– four of the new “Welcome to Stockade Historic District” banners on S. Church St., seen heading out of the Stockade toward State St. –
– Click on a photo for a larger version –
– 2 of the 3 banners placed on the south side of the short first block of Union St. looking east toward Church St. –
. . . If you’ve driven or walked up Union or S. Church Streets lately, you’ve surely seen our banner crop of handsome Welcome to the Stockade banners. With apologies to those who worked on and funded this project in an effort to improve the neighborhood, I feel compelled to say: there are far too many of them.
How many banners? Thirty-one in total, I am told, located solely on Union St. and S. Church St., corresponding with the geographic jurisdiction of the Downtown Schenectady Improvement Corporation [“DSIC”], which funded the project. Every lamppost on Union St. from Erie Blvd. to Washington Avenue has a banner, and so do several other Union St. utility poles. Every lamppost on S. Church also has a Welcome Banner. The block of Union St. from N. Ferry to College St. has a dozen or more Welcome banners, and there are two more at Union and Erie Blvd. Even with the leaves still on our trees, there are many spots from which 4 or 6 or more of the banners are visible when looking in a single direction. There are simply too many banners.
– 6 or more banners can be seen from midblock on Union St., looking east toward College St. –
The Stockade is not a downtown commercial district, much less an amusement park, used car lot, or ongoing festival or special event. It is a functioning, historic residential neighborhood, filled with people who love its historic charm and protected streetscape. Although the banners have a good-looking design, the overabundance of banners is exactly the kind of visual clutter our neighborhood association should be vigorously fighting. Instead, the Stockade Association has been working with DSIC to have the banners designed, made and installed — using DSIC “beautification” funds.
. . . It does indeed make sense to have a welcome banner at the various entryways to the Historic District, aimed at both intentional visitors to the district, and accidental or inadvertent visitors or through-farers. But, it’s rather difficult for me to fathom why anyone would want these banners on virtually every lamppost of our high-traffic blocks once you’ve entered the Stockade — unless, perhaps, you truly believe the banners do “beautify” our neighborhood; or, with a bit of irony, that they might help remind some scofflaw homeowners this is indeed a specially-protected historic district. And, what will the banners look like after they’ve been through a couple years of our weather extremes?










































































































































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