Kingston’s brand has many elements that collectively help distinguish the town in the minds of all who live and visit. In addition to its people, culture and activities, our town is blessed with many splendid and unique features, such as the Rondout waterfront, Wurts Street Bridge, City Hall, the Stockade District’s stone houses, Kingston Greenline, Old Dutch Church, and yes, those wood and green-metal porticos over the sidewalks of Wall and North Front streets called the Pike Plan.

Every town has a brand, whether it evolved over time organically or was intentionally crafted to turn a city from a location into a destination and engender civic pride. This isn’t necessarily about marketing a town, but about establishing a vision, mission and identity that umbrellas the whole. Around the world, towns spend considerable effort to define their image in the minds of visitors and citizens, and it often includes a few signature architectural elements. Whether it’s a giant statue like in Rio, or a leftover sign from a real estate company like in Hollywood, these iconic elements help to create distinction and memorability in the minds of the public — essential for successful place-branding. In our TMI (too much information) society, a town must stand out or be forced to stand aside in today’s competition for attention.

It's not just attention that towns seek when it comes to place-branding, but the ensuing tourism, investments, economic development and community pride that result. And love it or hate it, Kingston’s Pike Plan since the 1970s has been a part of its brand. Indeed, Wall Street, flanked by these porticos, was named in 2012 by the American Planning Association (APA) as one of “10 Great Streets” under the organization’s Great Places in America program. It is so distinctive that it is often featured in photographs of Kingston in Hudson Valley tourism brochures and promotional materials. No other Hudson Valley town has such an unusual public structure. And while it may not be “historic” in the strictest sense, Kingston hopefully has learned to not make planning decisions based on narrowly focused ideas about value and worth. You do not respect history by destroying it.

Architecture is usually a reflection of the time when it is built. It’s documentation of a community’s culture at the time and place it is built. Not everything created is to everyone’s liking, at the time of its creation, or in hindsight. A town is not a museum, but a living, changing space for its residents, and what one person thinks is “art,” another may feel is an embarrassment. If you wish to have perfectly curated architecture, you should never invite designers and artists to live amongst you (hat tip to the O+ mural artists and all the contributions by local artists, including John Pike). For perfection, you may as well live in a Levittown, a homeowner’s association development or a museum.

If we tear down structures that we think are “ugly” or troublesome, we’d be tearing down quite a lot of history. And sadly, we did — in the 1950s and ’60s, some believed the structures in Kingston’s East Strand were in need of demolition and gentrification. The same was the case for the old Post Office. Tragic mistakes in hindsight, and ones that can’t be undone.

Designed by celebrated local artist John Pike with architect Albert E. Milliken and finished in 1976, the Pike Plan is perhaps Kingston’s most significant public architecture feature of that era. It was a civic response to urban flight to the suburbs. The thinking behind the Pike Plan was to offer shoppers shelter from the elements as they go from shop to shop along Kingston’s charming streets and establish a unique space for the area. It was a valiant and risky attempt but doomed to fail (initially) with the later construction of the Ulster Avenue shopping plazas and the Hudson Valley Mall. As such, the Pike Plan developed a reputation as a failure by city elders, and as such likely “orphaned” in its upkeep, maintenance and uses. The structure doesn’t even have a decent name — just the original construction term, “the Pike Plan.” How about “Stockade Square” or something else more evocative and permanent? But the Pike Plan does have its supporters, often newer voices who have recently “discovered” Kingston.

From what I gather from city surveys and my informal polling, most people would prefer to keep the Pike Plan, in the abstract. There are those dead set against it, some being the building owners. Apparently, the Pike Plan construction and design was faulty from the beginning, and repairs done in the 2010s did not help keep water out of the buildings where it runs down into basements and causes structural damage. If I were a building owner, I would be beside myself constantly worrying. There are also concerns about how it “hides” shops from street view, and limits natural light on first floors. And let’s face it — it’s not a good look to have temporary lally columns holding up the canopies, and its beams and edges visibly rotting. But who pays to fix and maintain them, a cost the city has recently cited as being in the millions?

Because of the current litigation between New York City-based William Gottlieb Real Estate, owner of several buildings attached to the Pike Plan, and the City of Kingston over the Pike Plan’s future, government representatives were unable to speak about the topic with this writer. But at this time, the city administration and leadership recommend the Pike Plan’s demolition, presumably based on cost. But if the demise of the Pike Plan is to be based on money, before we take the irrevocable decision to remove them, the community should assemble a task force to seek grants, gifts and donations for the repair of the structure. The city’s administration has been so successful in acquiring so many wonderful grants to date. This could be the ultimate challenge — the rescue of the Pike Plan. Along the way, perhaps some upgrades may be made, such as adding solar-powered LED lights with color options for holidays and celebrations, and improved skylights for more natural light. It is clear the building owners along the Pike Plan should not be held financially solely responsible for the millions needed in repairs. To do so would result in astronomical commercial and residential rent increases and a huge changeover in the buildings ownership to those with deeper pockets. And city bonding or new taxes are very unpopular options.

Alternatively, I would offer this pro-bono public relations advice to the folks at William Gottlieb Real Estate. You could generate immediate and considerable goodwill within the Kingston community if you donated the funds to repair and upgrade the Pike Plan. On this, I agree with them — it is an important architectural asset and should be saved. No one else is in as good a position to save them than William Gottlieb Real Estate.

Raleigh Green is a local business owner specializing in marketing communications consulting and services. If you enjoy this column, please "like" it on social media and share online.