The rebirth of Denver Union Station has been marked by hundreds of steps in a long march over the course of the past decade. The complexity, the sheer magnitude of the project can be difficult to appreciate. So with any big undertaking like Union Station, it is important to periodically look back and take account of the progress made to date. We’ve been in need of that retrospective on this project.
Thanks to Westword‘s Joel Warner, we have been given not only an outstanding description of the journey so far, but also a comprehensive breakdown of the myriad issues confronting the project and a glimpse of the profound impact the completed Union Station will have on Denver’s future.
I’ve been following the Union Station project since the beginning and can say that Joel’s account is remarkable: he gets all the complicated facts and figures straight, he touches on the big and small hurdles the project has encountered along the way, he gains insight from all the key players, he presents a balanced perspective to all the various controversies, and he frames the project within a sweep of time that spans most of the city’s existence. It’s an exceptional effort, and a must-read for anyone who cares about our historic train station and its role in the ongoing renaissance of Downtown Denver.
Joel’s story, “Union Station may become Denver’s gateway again — if it stays on track” is in this week’s issue of Westword.
Can anyone tell me if Greyhound is definitely moving their operations to the future underground bus station at Union Station? I would love to see their bus station on 19th Street redeveloped. If they don't move to Union Station, they should move their bus station to near the future 40/40 train station. This site would also work very well because it is right off I-70 and bus travelers can still easily connect to take a train in all directions.
I can't wait for Union Station to come back online. And if we can get rail up I-70 and I-25, goodness.
I'm aiming for a central neighborhood house, but a condo overlooking the Station could be very tempting…
Somehow this article managed to paint a picture that was much easier for me to understand than the actual renderings. For instance, it never really dawned on me, the extent to which the old station would be disconnected from the actual transit activity off to the west of it. Sad really.
I enjoy stepping out of a train and into a station in London or Paris, and instantly being wowed by a grand, bustling atrium with huge, multi-story windows, that looks like it's been there forever – both ultra-modern and historic at once. It's too bad the historic part of Union Station – the Union Station part of Union Station – will get skipped altogether by most commuters who utilize the hub – relegating it to a token from that past with more novelty value than functionality. It takes away from the experience.
But this article painted another, more significant picture in my mind. I always knew this project would have a remarkable impact on downtown, but after reading this article, it feels less like fantasy and more like destiny. I am so excited. My only fear is that corners will be cut due to the extremely tight budget, and we'll end up stuck for many decades with mediocre, or even less than mediocre architecture as Denver's "centerpiece". I hate to be a pessimist but the fact is, Denver has a certain history that is not in our favor here. Let's hope this turns out to be a rare point in Denver's history where long-term significance and sustainability trumps over shot-term economics, which hasn't really been the case since the days of Speer – which was poignantly brought up by Mr. Warner when he compared this project to Civic Center.
The article doesn't mention the possibility of front range passenger rail.
To my knowledge, there has not been much in the media about the fact that front range rail will not be able to easily use Union Station because it will be a stub terminal. A different station out in the Platte Valley is one idea — but it would be sad not to arrive from Colorado Springs/Pueblo at Denver's historic station.
What happened to fastrack's website?
I went over there for the first time in a while and tried to look at the maps. They're gone. They've been replaced by this interactive map program thingy that only lets you see a tiny little 5" image that's unreadable. I don't understand why they would do that.
Dang. I should have saved the images when they were still available.