Side storage compartments

I'm in the process of dismantling the interior of my 78 American Skier and the side storage panels are rotted out pretty good. I really don't want to replace them because they take up a lot of room in the boat and I think I'd rather stack skis behind the drivers seat than have just 8" of floor space on either side of the engine cover. Does anyone know if these shelves are structurally neccessary or are they just decorative storage? They have a layer of fiberglass at the top edge that holds them to the sides of the boat and 3 or 4 short peices of I'm guessing 1 x 3 that help support it from the floor.

Here's a pic from the Diary section of what I'm talking about...