The city hall sits on a slight rise on the north side of Broadway, across from Kingston's high school and library.

It is three stories tall, capped by a mansard roof shingled in polychromatic slate with a dentiled brick cornice and a front bell tower, all atop a regular ashlar limestone foundation.

[3] The recessed main entrance, on the bell tower, is flanked by engaged stone columns topped with foliated capitals, rising to an arch echoed in the window treatments in the next two stages.

A large city council chamber, lit by chandeliers, on the upper floor seats 400.

[3] Crooks was a disciple of English aestheticist John Ruskin, who had favored the revival of Italian architectural traditions in the buildings of his time.

Kingston's City Hall uses many elements that Ruskin praised, in particular the polychromatic banding and towers.

Wood flooring was replaced with terrazzo, staircases with marble, and doors were clad in metal.

Its facades crumbled, and the rich interior became filled with broken glass and rusted metal.

The chandeliers had corroded due to water seepage, and the wall plastering was gradually becoming fine dust.

Council voted to authorize a bond issue in 1998, and along with private contributions and state and federal grants a total of $6.5 million was raised and spent.