I have waited to see if there was any reply to the question if Kingston, NY
urban renewal from a Kingstonian, but it has not happened. Although I do not
favor the destruction of an area of a city just to relocate the poor,
Kingston has survived the original demolition in a constructive way. Two
blocks of buildings on the North side of Broadway and the interior blocks of
the Strand on the Rondout Creek were leveled. On Broadway a mid level
apartment complex was built which is still in good condition. The Strand area
was turned into a city park, a parking complex for the apartments, and a dock
area for the local tour boat, the Rip Van Winkle.
       The waterfront area was revitalized as the old buildings that were
left were, in the main, redone into restaurants, boutiques and specialty
shops. The Strand area has become the summer tourist area for the City with a
tourist office, maritime museum of some note, a railroad museum in the old
rail yards, expanded dockage for the boating public, a revitalization of the
old City Point Park. It has become a place where all the large city
activities are held: the Forth of July, Shad Festival, part of the two day
burring of Kingston, display area of the various old boat reproductions that
tour the Hudson. Not exactly a dismal failure. (By the way, corn was never
grown there in colonial times.)
       Kingston also had another renewal area in the western part of the city
on North Front Street and Wall Street. Again the old buildings were replaced
with a medical center, a restaurant and two large motels.  All are doing very
well. This area led to the revitalizing of the North Front Street and Wall
Street shopping areas, which seemingly hold there own with the new mall
complexes now just north of the city.
       So although some history was lost during the "urban renewal phase" of
the 1970s, I would invite to I visit the historic city of Kingston during any
season and see what can be done.

David Baker, Historian, Town of Hurley
Three miles from Kingston and the second oldest settlement in Ulster County.