Kingston: An Urban Revitalization

Rebuilding American Cities after Urban Renewal

A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements of the Renée Crown University Honors Program at

Syracuse University

Amanda R. Brunner

Candidate for Bachelor of Architecture

and Renée Crown University Honors

Spring 2020

Honors Thesis in Architecture

Thesis Advisor: _______________________

Professor Lawrence Chua

Thesis Reader: _______________________

Professor Emanuel Carter

Honors Director: _______________________

Dr. Danielle Smith, Director

Abstract

In the 1960s, small American cities and low-income communities were razed in support

of urban renewal, a program launched by the federal government to clear slums and redevelop

areas within the city. Today, cities are struggling to recover from the damaging physical, social,

and economic effects of urban renewal. An example of one of these cities is Kingston, New

York. Once the state capital, it played a pivotal role in the birth of New York State as a

significant trading port and industrial power on the Hudson. Technological innovation and

concentrated growth just outside the city forced the slow decline of its industry, downtown, and

working-class neighborhoods. Today, it is fragmented, separated into three different and

disconnected zones by new development projects and changes in infrastructure. This

fragmentation has forced different neighborhoods of the city to develop at different speeds,

resulting in three separate economies and identities. Previously Kingston had built a diversified

economy surrounding business, trade, industry, and transportation. Today, a portion of the

economic success of Kingston relies heavily on tourism and business accelerators from the city.

This uneven growth has resulted in an inconsistent language throughout the city, and the

fragmentation has left gaps in the urban fabric that outside developers are looking to fill. This

phenomenon of development is especially prominent now that city-dwellers are looking to flee

larger urban areas and settle in more rural areas due to current events. This thesis looks to

investigate how one could effectively reverse the damage done by urban renewal regarding

fragmentation, connectivity, and identity. The intent is to revitalize Kingston, making it

walkable and dense again while still keeping an indication of its historic significance. This

solution to urban fragmentation is achieved through a series of techniques for interconnection

dealing with identity and purpose in a post-industrial city.

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Executive Summary

Downtown Kingston reached its peak in success in 1870 when it became a center for

industry and a significant port along the Hudson River. In 1954, IBM established a facility on

the outskirts of the city, bringing thousands of people into the area. Unfortunately, this, plus the

railroad system in the Hudson Valley, ushered in a slow decline for the downtown. This

concentrated a majority of the city’s growth in the uptown district and areas north of the city.

Tourists and people looking to settle in the Hudson Valley no longer had to go through the

downtown to get to Kingston, as the construction of Interstate-87 directed them just past the city.

Due to this decline, the Hudson River Valley Commission suggested tearing down old buildings

along the waterfront and received federal grant money to do so. This comes from a

redevelopment program in the Housing Act of 1949. Almost 500 buildings were demolished,

forcing out minority groups, artist communities, and low-income residents . Over 360 families 1

were displaced from Rondout in the 1960’s, a majority being low-income white families and

people of color. The once-thriving town of Rondout, the waterfront neighborhood that is today 2

considered to be downtown Kingston, was left stripped and vacant while city officials waited for

developers to take interest in the area. Decades later, the people of Kingston attempted to

rebuild, but the urban removal of Kingston has resulted in a fragmented, less-dense urban

network. Even though the city has been developed along one avenue, it is no longer walkable,

and outside help from developers has resulted in gentrification in historic neighborhoods. The

idea of gentrification, in this case, is defined by the movement of upper-class groups (i.e.,

1 Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal. Lost Rondout Project, 2016. 2 Lab, Digital Scholarship. Urban Renewal, 1950-1966. Accessed October 23, 2019.

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tourists, New York City residents looking for second homes, and businesses from larger cities

intending to expand into Kingston) into working-class neighborhoods like Rondout. Despite the 3

issues this creates with income inequality, the more pressing issue is the decrease in population

that this causes. Joshua Simons, senior research associate at SUNY New Paltz, is studying this

decline. “In cities like Hudson and Kingston, new residents tend to be wealthier white

professionals moving from New York City… They tend to have fewer children, and so you can

actually have an influx of people — more households moving in — but the size of your

household is decreasing, leading to a population decline… They call that gentrification.” This 4

can greatly impact the diversity and demographic of the neighborhoods, schools, and working

population of Kingston. Even still, while larger cities are seemingly a dangerous place for many

to live today due to current events, waves of people are migrating into more rural areas like the

Hudson Valley. The population of Kingston is about to drastically increase, and the urban fabric

is going to have to change and adapt.

The intent of this thesis is to come up with a biophilic strategy to fill in the gaps in the

urban network, connect all three districts, and unify Kingston under a consistent language that

does not take away from the unique identities of each neighborhood. The term “biophilic” refers

to the connection between people and nature, and our natural inclination to be associated with it. 5

The urban fabric, by this definition, will be stitched back together through green spaces and a

pedestrian-centric view, bringing pedestrians closer to nature through the creation of an urban

3 Gilson, Roger Hannigan, and Karl. “Here's Why the Hudson Valley and Catskills' Population Is Falling,” March 12, 2020. 4 Gilson, Roger Hannigan, and Karl. “Here's Why the Hudson Valley and Catskills' Population Is Falling,” March 12, 2020. 5 “Biophilic Design - Connecting with Nature to Improve Health & Well Being.” Oliver Heath, June 25, 2019.

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forest and greenway. Through the lens that the city will be examined through, this project will

also have to address issues of gentrification, a relationship between upstate New York and New

York City, and the culture of the minority groups that were relocated. Additionally, this is an

area that attracts people from New York City regarding vacation homes. Kingston is the closest

city to Woodstock, NY, a village that gained peak popularity in 1969 with the Woodstock Music

Festival, and still brings in hundreds of thousands of tourists to the area annually. Vogue

magazine named Kingston as one of the top five places to travel this fall (published August 30th,

2019). A city that brings in this much outside attention can easily become further gentrified, 6

which can be prevented with architectural strategies. It is likely that developers will attempt to

invest in Kingston in the immediate future. A project like this can theorize the best way to

develop without harming the urban fabric or community further.

The easiest way to understand how Kingston has developed over time is by looking at it

as three different cities, or districts. The Stockade District, or Uptown Kingston, is the oldest

section of the city, settled by the Dutch in 1658. This area is where most of the locals live, and is

populated by small local businesses, historic landmarks, outdoor open-air markets, and the only

grocery store within walking distance. Downtown, which was previously known as Rondout,

was independent of Kingston until 1872, where it was integrated into the city limits, losing its

autonomy. The downtown of Kingston exists along the waterfront, and is the area that tourists

populate the most, due to the predominant nightlife. Recently, an interest in the historic

significance of Rondout has peaked since the documentary Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban

Removal circulated in 2016. The waterfront has been flooded with developers who are

6 Taylor, Elise. “Five Places to Travel This Fall.” Vogue Magazine, August 30, 2019.

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attempting to make a profit off of this interest. Finally, Midtown Kingston connects the two,

acting as a spine between them. Midtown is where industry was most prominent in the early

20th century. The interest of developers in Midtown circulates around warehouses left behind

after industry left the area; these buildings are being redeveloped to house artist colonies,

business accelerators, and tech companies from the city. Midtown is the largest of these three

neighborhoods, and is home to Kingston High School, the Ulster Performing Arts Center, and

City Hall. Most of the people employed in Kingston work in Midtown, which is also severed in

half by an overpass for the freight train, making it difficult to walk from one end of the

neighborhood to the other. Despite the fact that Kingston was separated into three

neighborhoods already before urban renewal, the intention was for the city to read as one unified

whole. Urban renewal furthered the fragmentation and disconnect between each neighborhood,

causing them to read as three separate, distinct areas as opposed to one city.

This project will define architectural interests regarding urban strategies, historic

development, contextual design, and scale by reconnecting the fragmented neighborhoods along

one major intervention with several points of interest. Kingston is a city that local architects,

outside developers, and several generations of residents are invested in the future of, and this

thesis will prove that an architectural and urban solution is what can bring it back from a period

of struggle following urban renewal.

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Table of Contents

Abstract……………………………………….……………….………….. 2 Executive Summary………………………….……………….………….. 3

Chapter 1: A Timeline of Kingston ……………………………………………… 8 Chapter 2: “Biophilic” Interventions ……………………………………… 14 Works Cited.……………………………………………………………… 25 Appendices………………………………………………………………… 27

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Chapter 1

A Timeline of Kingston

The history of Kingston begins with its creation by Dutch settlers and Peter Stuyvesant in

1658. Its intention was to be a fortified town and trading outpost along the Hudson. Initially,

they wanted to settle directly on the waterfront, in current-day Rondout, but Stuyvesant

suggested building at the top of the hill, as it was more secure regarding defense. Where they

settled is now the Stockade District. Fast forward to October of 1777, Kingston was made the

capital of New York State, in direct retaliation of the British following the Battle of Saratoga. A

month later, British loyalists landed on the Hudson and, following Rondout Creek, burned down

the city. Over 300 buildings were destroyed, and Kingston relinquished its position as the capital

in order to rebuild. 7

Rondout came into the picture in 1825, when construction on the Delaware and Hudson

Canal began. The canal would ease the transport of coal from Philadelphia up the Hudson.

People began to move closer to the waterfront, where the jobs were. “By 1840, the village had a

population of fifteen hundred, two hundred residences, two churches, six hotels and taverns,

twenty-five stores, three freighting establishments, a tobacco factory, a gristmill, four boat yards,

two dry docks, and the office and dock of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company.” Rondout 8

had built a diversified economy surrounding business, trade, industry, and transportation. The

7 “BURNING HISTORY.” The Burning of Kingston History. Accessed October 12, 2019. 8 “Rondout-West Strand Historic District.” Rondout-West Strand Historic District, Kingston City, Ulster County, Kingston NY, 12401. Accessed February 3, 2020.

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industry in this area revolved around construction materials, including limestone, cement, bricks,

coal, and bluestone. Despite their success, Rondout lacked a concrete center of government,

unlike Kingston. At this point, Kingston was investing in government, banks, and professional

services, which Rondout did not have. The two villages were highly dependent on one another.

“In 1872, after each had tried to gain incorporation as a city, they merged into one governmental

unit; Kingston retained its name but Rondout kept the balance of power by constituting five of

the nine wards of the city.” The drawback to this is that Rondout lost its autonomy when it 9

became a part of Kingston. This is significant later on, as 20 years in the future, the federal

government starts investing in the research of slums, and Rondout becomes a target according to

the city of Kingston.

From this point on, several events occur that seal Rondout’s fate as an area targeted for

urban renewal. In 1898, the prominence of the railroad caused the Delaware and Hudson canal

to suffer and close. This was a heavy blow for industry in Rondout, as many people relied on the

canal for the transport of goods as well as employment. In the 1930s, the Mid Hudson bridge

opened. This is located to the north of Kingston, which means that people coming into the city

do not need to go through Rondout to get to Kingston via car. This cut Kingston’s downtown off

from a lot of business and pedestrian traffic. Over time, Rondout was no longer considered to be

the thriving port town that it once was. In 1949, the federal government proposed the Housing

Act of 1949, which kickstarted urban redevelopment and provided federal funding to cities to

9 “Rondout-West Strand Historic District.” Rondout-West Strand Historic District, Kingston City, Ulster County, Kingston NY, 12401. Accessed February 3, 2020.

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cover the cost of acquiring areas of cities perceived to be slums. This also became the precedent

for future Housing Acts that put urban renewal into motion.

In 1954, Kingston went into a period of economic success following the establishment of

an IBM base just north of the city. People come from out of state and other cities in New York

to settle in and around Kingston, drawn to the jobs. Suburbs in Woodstock, Hurley, and

Marbletown as well as within the city limits are filled with IBM employees and their families.

Unfortunately for Kingston’s downtown, Rondout becomes more obsolete. Also in 1954, the

federal government enacted the Housing Act of 1954, which popularized the phrase “urban

renewal.” It also made redevelopment projects more enticing to outside developers by providing

federally-backed mortgages. Jane Jacobs, an activist who influenced urban studies, went on to

publish The Death and Life of Great American Cities, which caused residents of Kingston to

have split opinions about urban renewal. Was it worth mowing down Rondout for new

development and a “safer” neighborhood if it meant displacing the families who live there and

destroying historically significant properties? This did not phase officials within the city of

Kingston, however, as they approved the Broadway East urban renewal plan in 1964, scheduling

over 400 buildings in Rondout and beyond for demolition. They also planned an idealistic

community, essentially a suburb, to take its place, inspired by the styles of the Bauhaus and Le

Corbusier . In 1965, locals who lived and worked downtown retaliated by starting the Friends 10

of Historic Kingston. This group attempted to purchase and protect properties threatened by

urban renewal. An issue that they faced was that banks and financial advisors refused to give

10 Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal . Lost Rondout Project, 2016.

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people loans to fix up or purchase buildings scheduled for removal, as they saw it as a lost cause

and a poor investment.

On February 8th, 1966, the first property in Rondout was demolished. It was a public 11

event, but locals couldn’t bear to witness the destruction. Additionally, thousands of people

whose homes were scheduled for demolition were displaced to housing just outside the city.

Issues arose with the mass displacement of people, as 23% of those who had to find new housing

were people of color; they were turned away by landlords and had to find housing far outside the

city limits . This caused a concentration of minorities in towns such as Ulster, which is to the 12

north of Kingston. In 1968, the Fair Housing Act was passed, which outlawed most forms of

housing discrimination. Even still, landlords still found a way to turn people down.

Despite all this, city officials still held onto the belief that with all the removal would

come reconstruction. They were certain that, once Rondout was left a clean slate, developers

would be willing and interested to “save” it. The areas that were being torn down were

considered to be “slums,” and were generally low-income areas, so most Kingston residents did

not see a problem with it. That is, until 1971, when the Kingston Post office in Midtown was

torn down. It was a beautiful Beaux-Arts-style building designed in 1908 by James Knox

Taylor, who was well known for his designs of federal buildings. The building was put up for 13

sale by the city for $1 to any business or organization, and no one was willing to save it. “One

dollar, that was the price the City of Kingston could have paid the Treasury Department for the

11 Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal . Lost Rondout Project, 2016. 12 Lab, Digital Scholarship. Urban Renewal, 1950-1966. Accessed October 23, 2019. 13 Horrigan, Jeremiah. “Friends of Historic Kingston Memorialize Razed Post Office.” Hudson Valley One, March 14, 2019.

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old post office after the new Cornell Street facility was in operation. The offer came with one

stipulation: that it remain available for municipal use. Imagine what a library it would have

made, right by the high school in the center of town! City historian Ed Ford suggested it be

converted into a police station.” It was demolished and made into a Jack-in-the-Box, a 14

fast-food chain restaurant. People were so enraged that they finally took action against urban

renewal in Kingston. The post office became a catalyst, beginning the push for historic

preservation.

Meanwhile, as of 1976, Kingston invested millions of dollars of federal funding into

updating the roads, sewers, and infrastructure of downtown and midtown. None of the money 15

went towards new construction or updating existing buildings, as Kingston officials hoped that

developers would be interested in investing in new properties. This never happened, and

Rondout was left empty for over a decade. Kingston was full of vacant lots and dilapidated

buildings. It wasn’t until 1994, when Mayor T.R. Gallo finally supported funds to rebuild

downtown. As mentioned earlier, local banks would not give people loans to rebuild until this

point. Things were looking promising for the future of Kingston, until the IBM plant closed in

1996, moving thousands of people to Poughkeepsie.

From this point on, federal legislation changed to allow for neighborhoods to restabilize

themselves and rebuild. The Housing and Economic Recovery Act in 2008 authorized a

Neighborhood Stabilization Program, which was intended to issue grants for the purchase and

redevelopment of foreclosed properties. In 2009, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

14 Staff. “Remembering the Old Kingston Post Office.” Hudson Valley One, December 9, 2019. 15 Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal . Lost Rondout Project, 2016.

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was developed to authorize $1.9 billion for neighborhood stabilization post-housing market

collapse. Today, Kingston rides a line between gentrified city and historic tourist destination.

The city is no longer walkable and less dense than it was in its prime. Kingston is attractive

mostly to residents of New York City looking to escape to a less urban area, and tourists drawn

to surrounding towns, such as Woodstock and Saugerties. Small scale efforts are being made by

community groups and local architects to revitalize the city, such as artist housing, warehouse

restoration and redesign, and the current push for remembering and celebrating what Kingston

was like pre-urban renewal. While it is certainly an improvement following urban renewal in the

1960s, there is still a long way to go to make the three districts feel like one complete city again.

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Chapter 2

“Biophilic” Interventions and Techniques for Interconnection

In order to provide a solution to the fragmentation of Kingston, this project will engage in

and employ a series of techniques for interconnection. These will be generalized as Armature,

Urban Surfaces, and Forest.

In this project, the armature will take the form of a greenway that runs along Broadway,

the spine that connects all three neighborhoods. This greenway will be achieved through the

implementation of a series of sendas. Sendas are pedestrian footpaths that exist alongside or in

the middle of an autoroute. The most similar comparison to a senda is a bike path, except sendas

are lined with trees and act independently from the road. A culture that is dominant in Ulster

County is cycle culture. The Women’s Woodstock Cycling Grand Prix is an event that occurs

annually and brings in female cyclists from all over the country. Additionally, a recent project

that has been the focus of county executives is the Ulster County Rail Trail Project. This project

has taken unused tracks of rail and transformed them into a walking and biking path that runs

along the Ashokan Reservoir. Some goals of the project include: 16

● Connecting Kingston neighborhoods to Catskill Park and the Ashokan Reservoir

● Increasing outdoor recreation opportunities and promoting healthy lifestyles

● Providing “car-free” transportation options

16 “Ulster County Rail Trail Project: Ulster County.” Ulster County Rail Trail Project | Ulster County.

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● Expanding tourism business in Ulster County and Hudson Valley region

In terms of the implementation of sendas in Kingston, the intent overlaps. By

implementing pedestrian paths in Kingston, people who live within the city can be provided with

car-free transportation, as well as a safe route to connect the neighborhoods. Additionally, the

streets will seem denser due to the median in the middle of the streets, as well as the increase of

street trees. According to Dan Burden, Senior Urban Designer involved with the University of

California, Agriculture and Natural resources, street trees do more than just improve the visual

quality of our neighborhoods and streets. “Urban street trees create vertical walls framing

streets, and a defined edge, helping motorists guide their movement and assess their speed,

leading to overall speed reductions” and an increase in pedestrian safety. Additionally, the 17

implementation of green space in our cities creates something called the Forest Bathing effect.

Studies show that being in and around green spaces has “positive physiological effects, such as

blood pressure reduction, improvement of autonomic and immune functions, as well as

psychological effects of alleviating depression and improving mental health.” 18

Along Broadway, there are several points of interest that could interact with the sendas.

The small-scale interventions that this project looks to implement exist at four specific locations:

Albany Avenue, the Midtown Overpass, the Post Office Site, and the Strand Waterfront. This

will involve the creation or improvement of several public spaces, built interventions, and parks,

17 Burden, Dan. “22 Benefits of Urban Street Trees.” University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources. Glatting Jackson and Walkable Communities, Inc, May 2006. 18 Furuyashiki, Akemi, Keiji Tabuchi, Kensuke Norikoshi, Toshio Kobayashi, and Sanae Oriyama. “A Comparative Study of the Physiological and Psychological Effects of Forest Bathing (Shinrin-Yoku) on Working Age People with and without Depressive Tendencies.” Environmental health and preventive medicine. BioMed Central, June 22, 2019.

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dealing with Urban Surfaces, how they connect, and how they interact with the armature. The

points that have been selected are key because, currently, they impede the ability of pedestrians

to travel from one end of the city to the other or they contribute to the fragmentation of Kingston.

Albany Avenue exists as the connecting piece between the Stockade District and

Midtown. It is not walkable, and is difficult for pedestrians to navigate. This creates dead space,

as Uptown and Midtown are separated by a busy street, and people are forced to drive to get

from one district to the other. There is also an unused sculpture park because pedestrians cannot

reach the space. Local businesses along this intersection are missing out on getting business

from the Uptown demographic. There is a lack of density due to a multitude of parking lots and

vacant spaces, as a majority of the people from Uptown must drive to get to Midtown and

Downtown and require parking. The city's solution to this is to implement a traffic circle, which

would only further separate Uptown from the rest of the city despite the intent to bring in some

green space. The intervention that this project looks to implement in this area is to make the

intersection more pedestrian friendly, as well as making the sculpture park more of a legitimate

park. Street trees and parks that sit adjacent to roads reduce traffic speeds in urban areas by

forcing the movement of motorists. They also create safer walking environments for 19

pedestrians by indicating clear zones for shared traffic areas. Having a more substantial park 20

and a safer way for pedestrians to move from district to district has several positive effects. In

terms of short-term effects, local businesses along the intersection will be able to get more foot

19 Burden, Dan. “22 Benefits of Urban Street Trees.” University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources. Glatting Jackson and Walkable Communities, Inc, May 2006. 20 Burden, Dan. “22 Benefits of Urban Street Trees.” University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources. Glatting Jackson and Walkable Communities, Inc, May 2006.

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traffic. Local markets and grocers will be able to reach more people, shrinking the food desert in

Midtown. Parking lots will become less necessary, so vacant lots can be used for other

programs. Regarding long-term effects, the sculpture park can act as a grander and more

significant public space within Kingston. The lack of need for parking lots will allow businesses

to sell space for development. The streets will narrow and feel more dense because the number

of vacant lots is minimized, creating a more dynamic streetscape.

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Fig. 1-3: Albany Avenue now, post-intervention, and improvements predicted 10-15 years in the future

For the most part, Midtown runs between Uptown and Downtown as a singular spine,

except for where it is divided by the Overpass. Previously, the streets of Midtown were much

thinner, and a public trolley ran down the middle of the street. In order to allow for the freight

train to run without any interference from traffic, the city built an underpass in the 1950s/1960s

for cars to travel underneath the existing train tracks. This also widened the streets, causing

some building facades to get cut off. People prefer not to walk under the overpass because it

feels unsafe. It forces the area surrounding the overpass to have lower pedestrian traffic.

Currently, the sidewalks are lower than the level of the buildings adjacent to it, separating it from

the rest of the block. The intervention intended for the Overpass is a biophilic solution, which

also includes connections drawn between the sidewalk and spaces above it. The overpass should

feel safer and more enjoyable to walk under. Short-term effects of solving the overpass issue

include an increase in pedestrian traffic for local businesses and community spaces, as

“businesses on treescaped streets show 20% higher income streams, which is often the essential

competitive edge needed for main street store success.” Creating a biophilic intervention and 21

having a higher density of greenery underneath the overpass will also create a more dynamic

streetscape in addition to improving feelings of pedestrian safety.

21 Burden, Dan. “22 Benefits of Urban Street Trees.” University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources. Glatting Jackson and Walkable Communities, Inc, May 2006.

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Fig. 4-6: Overpass now, post-intervention, and improvements predicted 10-15 years in the future

The Post Office site has significance due to its role following urban renewal in Kingston.

It acted as the catalyst that started the call for the end of urban renewal. Currently, it is a vacant

fast food joint in the middle of a parking lot. Adjacent to this lot is the Millard Building, which

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is a significant historic building with a business park that runs parallel to the street, which is the

site for many major protests within the city. Due to the vacant lot next to it and the confused

traffic in and around the site, it does not get much use other than that. The vacant lot creates a

dead space in terms of density, and it does not efficiently utilize the site and sidewalk. A

proposed intervention for this site is a public market space that interacts with the business park as

well. This would solve a few issues short-term. First, it would shrink the size of the food desert

in Midtown. The only grocery store within the immediate city limits is in Uptown, Midtown

only has small corner stores and bodegas, and Downtown has only restaurants. A majority of the

people living and working in Kingston reside in Midtown, and yet they have to travel to a

different neighborhood for food. A market with local vendors could have a lasting impact.

Additionally, local businesses in Midtown could have access to a larger range of food options.

Near the site, there are many prominent local businesses, as well as community spaces like the

YMCA, Kingston High School, and City Hall. There are not many options for people when it

comes to food. Having a central location where people could go on their lunch break and enjoy

the business park is beneficial not only that it prevents people from having to drive outside of

Midtown, but it also has more people using public spaces in this area. A long-term effect of

having an indoor market is that it gives the Uptown Farmers Market somewhere to go in the off

season. The weekly farmers markets in Uptown bring in a lot of foot traffic, a lot of tourists, and

a lot of local farmers, artisans, and small businesses. Unfortunately, the market only runs from

May to November, and drastically downsizes during the winter. Having a secondary indoor

space where a market could take place means that the farmers market can have significance year

round, people in Midtown can enjoy it, a larger number of tourists can be brought into Midtown,

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and local businesses in the area can take advantage of having a secondary space to sell goods to a

larger demographic.

Fig. 7-9: Post Office site now, post-intervention, and improvements predicted 10-15 years in the future

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Finally, the last small-scale intervention exists at the Strand Waterfront. The Strand is

the part of Rondout that runs adjacent to the Rondout Creek, which empties into the Hudson. It

underwent a massive density change with urban renewal. Urban renewal drastically widened the

streets, making it less dense, and townhouses were built in the 1980s to fill some of the vacant

lots left over from demolition. An issue that these townhouses present is that the sidewalk in

front of them becomes a dead zone. People who live there enter their houses from the back,

where the driveway is. The sidewalk becomes unused and is left awkwardly empty. The Strand

district acts as a combination of a heritage area and Kingston’s nightlife. A majority of the bars,

more exciting restaurants, outdoor music festivals, and waterfront events exist in this area. The

historic waterfront is being rebuilt with this in mind. Old warehouses are being renovated to be

breweries and taprooms. They are keeping the historic significance in mind, however, with the

inclusion of the Hudson River Maritime Museum and several cultural centers. The Strand is

where most developers are looking to invest in. The intervention proposes two things: the

introduction of street trees along the sidewalks and medians, and the creation of an event space

along the waterfront. Street trees aim to densify the wide streets, as well as encourage people to

walk in the dead zones created by the townhouses. This will eradicate the awkward condition

between the townhouses, sidewalk, and street, as residents will engage the sidewalk. “Trees

create more pleasant walking environments, bringing about increased walking, talking, pride,

care of place, association and therefore actual ownership and surveillance of homes, blocks,

neighborhoods plazas, businesses and other civic spaces.” As for the event space, a large 22

number of tourists come to the area to visit Woodstock, a village made popular with the 1969

22 Burden, Dan. “22 Benefits of Urban Street Trees.” University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources. Glatting Jackson and Walkable Communities, Inc, May 2006.

22

music festival, even if the event did not actually take place there. Over 150,000 people intended

to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the festival in 2019. Unfortunately for Kingston, even

though people come to the area looking to attend concerts, the closest large event space is in

Bethel, New York, over 60 miles away. Since this is an area where nightlife and outdoor

festivals are prominent, an event space would make sense. The intention of this intervention is to

build up the waterfront to support and complement tourist activities, nightlife, and historic

preservation.

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Fig. 10-12: Strand waterfront now, post-intervention, and improvements predicted 10-15 years in the future

The creation of a forest as infill is the final strategy for interconnection. Street trees and

urban forests do more than just improve the visual quality of our neighborhoods and streets.

Urban street trees create vertical elements that frame and define our streets, helping motorists

guide their movement and assess their speed, leading to an overall increase in pedestrian safety.

Additionally, the implementation of green space in our cities creates something called the Forest

Bathing effect : which is that being in and around green spaces has positive physiological 23

effects and psychological effects on improving mental health. In addition to the use of trees as a

vertical surface, the interventions also use street lamps as a repetitive element. These lamps also

act as a way of increasing neighborhood identity as well as safety, indicating which

neighborhood one is located in along the armature. Currently, a majority of trees and plantings

are concentrated on the fringes of the city, where people with single-family homes live and the

density significantly decreases. With the proposal for a less fragmented Kingston, the tree

concentration increases along Broadway, where the greenway runs. There would be an increase

in trees and plantings in medians, the greenway, parks, and around the high school and

government buildings. The intent here is as if one is walking to work or school through a forest.

23 Furuyashiki, Akemi, Keiji Tabuchi, Kensuke Norikoshi, Toshio Kobayashi, and Sanae Oriyama. “A Comparative Study of the Physiological and Psychological Effects of Forest Bathing (Shinrin-Yoku) on Working Age People with and without Depressive Tendencies.” Environmental health and preventive medicine. BioMed Central, June 22, 2019.

24

Fig. 13 & 14: the City of Kingston before and after biophilic interventions, tree density diagrams

With regards to the entire city as a linear unit, the main street Broadway runs through all

three neighborhoods like a spine. The use of the sendas as a supplement to this spine will

introduce a common theme of green space and pedestrian-centered activity, without distracting

from or changing the distinct qualities of each district. The design of urban surfaces and the

inclusion of a forest bolster and support that spine. Since Kingston was initially developed as

two separate villages that were linked together with a third neighborhood, it reads as three

separate urban zones as opposed to one unit. They each have their own program, demographic,

aesthetic, and future direction for development. In order to prevent further fragmentation from

developers, these biophilic interventions intend to allow Kingston to be read as a single urban

zone as opposed to three, with dead zones, divided neighborhoods, and vehicular-centric moves

to prevent pedestrians from experiencing Kingston as a whole city.

What we can see in Kingston today is a push towards non-motorized transportation, a

desire for access to green and open space, and a deep appreciation for the historic value that

Kingston has. Since the premiere of Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal in 2016, the

25

discussion surrounding the future of Kingston has been focused on what the community needs

and desires with regards to , and less about what the city officials do. There is a shift that

Kingston is about to experience regarding population and demographics, as current events are

forcing people to move out of larger cities. With this shift will come the need to redevelop,

make new neighborhoods, and build upon the neighborhoods that need further assistance. I think

that Ulster County Executive Mike Hein summarizes the importance of a project like this to

Kingston well. “These antiquated transportation corridors are holding our communities back in

many ways. By transforming them into interconnected walking and biking trails, I believe they

can serve instead as connective threads, weaving back together disconnected neighborhoods.” 24

24 Schulman, Ben. “Renewing Kingston for the Second Time.” architectmagazine.com, May 8, 2018.

26

Works Cited

“Biophilic Design - Connecting with Nature to Improve Health & Well Being.” Oliver Heath, June 25, 2019. https://www.oliverheath.com/biophilic-design-connecting-nature-improve-health-well/.

Burden, Dan. “22 Benefits of Urban Street Trees.” University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources. Glatting Jackson and Walkable Communities, Inc, May 2006. https://ucanr.edu/sites/sjcoeh/files/74156.pdf. “BURNING HISTORY.” The Burning of Kingston History. Accessed October 12, 2019. http://www.burningofkingston.com/history.html. DeHaven, Tad. “Department of Housing and Urban Development Timeline.” Downsizing the Federal Government. Downsizing the Federal Government, October 23, 2019. https://www.downsizinggovernment.org/hud/timeline. Esposito, Melissa. “Kingston: The IBM Years Gives a Peek Into Tech Giant’s History.” Hudson Valley Magazine. Accessed June 4, 2014. http://www.hvmag.com/Hudson-Valley-Magazine/June-2014/Kingston-The-IBM-Years-Gives-a-Peek-Into-Tech-Giants-History/. Furuyashiki, Akemi, Keiji Tabuchi, Kensuke Norikoshi, Toshio Kobayashi, and Sanae Oriyama. “A Comparative Study of the Physiological and Psychological Effects of Forest Bathing (Shinrin-Yoku) on Working Age People with and without Depressive Tendencies.” Environmental health and preventive medicine. BioMed Central, June 22, 2019. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6589172/.

Gilson, Roger Hannigan, and Karl. “Here's Why the Hudson Valley and Catskills' Population Is Falling,” March 12, 2020. https://theotherhudsonvalley.com/2019/02/12/hudson-valley-population/.

Horrigan, Jeremiah. “Friends of Historic Kingston Memorialize Razed Post Office.” Hudson Valley One, March 14, 2019. https://hudsonvalleyone.com/2015/07/11/friends-of-historic-kingston-memorialize-razed-post-office/. “Kingston Stockade District: Historic Hudson Valley.” New York by Rail. Accessed January 5, 2020. https://www.newyorkbyrail.com/local-guide/kingston-stockade-district/.

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Klokan Technologies GmbH. “Kingston East.” Old Maps Online. Accessed October 23, 2019. https://www.oldmapsonline.org/map/usgs/5446520. Lab, Digital Scholarship. Urban Renewal, 1950-1966. Accessed October 23, 2019. https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/renewal/#view=1/0/1&viz=cartogram&city=kingstonNY&loc=14/41.9290/-74.0040. Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal. Lost Rondout Project, 2016. Murphy, Patricia OReilly. Kingston. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2013. “REFINE.” Browse All : Images of Kingston (N.Y.) - David Rumsey Historical Map Collection. Accessed October 23, 2019. https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/view/all/where/Kingston (N.Y.)?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort,Pub_Date,Pub_List_No,Series_No. Rödjer, Lars, Ingibjörg H Jonsdottir, and Mats Börjesson. “Physical Activity on Prescription (PAP): Self-Reported Physical Activity and Quality of Life in a Swedish Primary Care Population, 2-Year Follow-Up.” Scandinavian journal of primary health care. Taylor & Francis, December 2016. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5217291/. “Rondout: Hudson River Port 1850-1950.” Hudson River Maritime Museum, 1998. http://www.hrmm.org/uploads/2/6/3/3/26336013/rondout_a_hudson_river_port_1850-1950_1998.pdf. “Rondout-West Strand Historic District.” Rondout-West Strand Historic District, Kingston City, Ulster County, Kingston NY, 12401. Accessed February 3, 2020. https://www.livingplaces.com/NY/Ulster_County/Kingston_City/Rondout-West_Strand_Historic_District.html. Schulman, Ben. “Renewing Kingston for the Second Time.” architectmagazine.com, May 8, 2018. https://www.architectmagazine.com/aia-architect/aiafeature/renewing-kingston-for-the-second-time_o.

Staff. “Remembering the Old Kingston Post Office.” Hudson Valley One, December 9, 2019. https://hudsonvalleyone.com/2019/12/09/remembering-the-old-kingston-post-office/.

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Taylor, Elise. “Five Places to Travel This Fall.” Vogue Magazine, August 30, 2019. https://www.vogue.com/article/5-places-to-travel-this-fall?verso=true.

29

Appendices

Kingston before Urban Renewal (left column) and Kingston today (right column) 25

25 Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal . Lost Rondout Project, 2016.

30

Rondout (Downtown Kingston) in 1883 26

Midtown during the

construction of the

overpass, unknown date,

Photograph by Bob

Haines 27

26 Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal . Lost Rondout Project, 2016. 27 Schulman, Ben. “Renewing Kingston for the Second Time.” architectmagazine.com, May 8, 2018.

31

Postcard of the Kingston Post office, Midtown 28

Back of the post office

and site conditions,

Midtown 29

28 Horrigan, Jeremiah. “Friends of Historic Kingston Memorialize Razed Post Office.” Hudson Valley One, March 14, 2019. 29 Staff. “Remembering the Old Kingston Post Office.” Hudson Valley One, December 9, 2019.

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