We created a brick pedestal to cover the lower part of the post, then concealed its upper portion with a 10-foot fiberglass column.
We used a Turncraft column; the local distributor split the fiberglass column, the PVC base, and the polyurethane foam capital in its shop.
The split PVC base
We fastened the first half of the column to the masonry base and the boxed-out soffit with L-clips, then — using construction adhesive and countersunk screws — installed pairs of 2-by splice blocks.
This step wasn't recommended by the manufacturer and in retrospect was probably unnecessary, but at the time the added blocking seemed like a good way to increase the bonding area between the column halves.
As we tightened our ratchet straps, a few areas deflected under the pressure and didn't line up properly, but wood shims underneath the straps corrected the problem.
At the top, the column is finished with a polyurethane foam capital, which we screwed to the soffit and glued together and to the column with PL-400 construction adhesive.
A pair of splice plates glued to the split PVC base with a quicksetting two-part epoxy helped us align the two halves.
Finally, we painted the column to match the trim.