Big Changes to Union Station Design. More Information Required.

The public-private partnership team working on the design of Union Station has recently announced major changes to the transportation component of the project. See the Friends of Union Station web site for a high level written description of the new design.(http://www.friendsofunionstation.org/news.htm). Additionally, see Figure to the left of this paragraph from The Denver Post for a partial graphical representation of the new plan.(http://www.denverpost.com/ci_7501540)

Some of the important changes include building the commuter rail station at-grade instead of in an uncovered below-grade trench, a plan for integrating a commercial bus terminal at the Union Station site (see my blog from November 4, 2007 which calls for this integration: http://aviewoftherockies.blogspot.com/2007/11/including-commerical-bus-depot-at-union.html), changes to the 16th Street Mall Shuttle and the Downtown Circulator routes and stops near Union Station, the opening of 16th Street from Wynkoop to Chestnut Streets to private automobile traffic and other changes.

Putting the commuter rail at grade instead of below grade is one of the biggest changes and this apparently has to do with both safety and cost issues.

Obviously these changes raise a number of questions and concerns. Are they good for the utility and operations of the transit junction? Will the new design facilitate easy transfers among the various transportation modes served by the site? How will the changes impact the building density and other aspects of the mixed use redevelopment planned for the site? Will the new plan provide a world class experience for transportation users both in the short-term and in the long-term? Why are these design changes happening so late in the planning process? Will the public have an adequate opportunity to provide input and feedback on the changes? How will these changes impact place-building, aesthetic considerations and other civic aspects of the project's design? How will these changes impact the neighborhoods surrounding Union Station? And many others.

These changes have also generated a great deal of discussion and criticism from some online forums. See for example the Mountain West Forum on Skyscraperpage.com(http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=127820&page=15).

A View of the Rockies believes that the redevelopment of Union Station will have a critical impact on Metro Denver over coming decades and must be done with great care and foresight. Until we learn more information about the specifics of the new plans, we are holding off on providing an assessment of these design changes.