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Union Station (Kansas City, Missouri)
Encyclopedia
Union Station Kansas City in Kansas City, Missouri
, is one of many union station
s in the United States
.
, a company controlled by the *12 railroads serving Kansas City, decided that a new location was needed for the train depot. The location at the time was prone to flooding by the Kansas
and Missouri River
s. A new location was selected south of the central business district, above and away from the floodplain
. The architect
chosen to design the building was Jarvis Hunt
, a proponent of the City Beautiful movement. The design was a main hall for ticketing, and a perpendicular hall extending out over the tracks for passenger waiting. The Beaux-Arts station opened on October 30, 1914 as the second-largest train station in the country. The building encompasses 850,000 square feet (79,000 m²), the ceiling in the Grand Hall is 95 feet (29 m) high, there are three chandeliers weighing 3,500 pounds (1600 kg) each, and the Grand Hall clock has a six-foot (1.8-m) diameter face. Due to its central location, Kansas City was a hub for both passenger and freight rail traffic. The scale of the building reflected this status.
Union Station made headlines on June 17, 1933, as four unarmed FBI agents were gunned down by gang members attempting to free captured fugitive Frank Nash
. Nash was also killed in the gun battle. The “Kansas City Massacre
” highlighted the lawlessness of Kansas City under the Pendergast Machine
and resulted in the arming of all FBI agents.
In 1945, annual passenger traffic peaked at 678,363. As train travel declined beginning in the 1950s, the city had less and less need for a large train station. By 1973, only 32,842 passengers passed through the facility, all passenger train service was now run by Amtrak, and the building was beginning to deteriorate. The city government of Kansas City wished to preserve and redevelop the building. To facilitate this, they made a development deal with Trizec, a Canadian
redevelopment firm. Included in the deal was an agreement that Trizec would redevelop the station. Between 1979 and 1986, Trizec constructed two office buildings on surrounding property, but did not redevelop the station. In 1985, Amtrak moved all passenger operations to a smaller facility. By this time, the station was essentially closed. In 1988, the city filed suit against Trizec for the failure to develop the station; the case was settled in 1994. For most of this time period, the building continued to decay.
in both Kansas
and Missouri
approved the so-called "bi-state tax", a 1/8 of a cent sales tax
, part of which helped to fund just under half of the $250 million restoration of Union Station. Renovation began in 1997 and was completed in 1999. The remaining money was raised through private donations and federal funding.
Today Union Station receives no public funding. Current operating costs are funded by general admission and theater ticketing, grants, corporate and private donations, commercial space leases and facility rental. Union Station is a nonprofit 501c3 organization. Union Station is now home to Science City
, a family-friendly interactive science center with more than 50 hands-on exhibits; the H&R Block City Stage Theater, a live-action venue with productions for young and old alike; the Reginer Extreme Screen, the largest 3-D movie screen in the region at five and half stories tall; two restaurants, including Pierponts, an upscale steak and seafood restaurant, and the Harvey's at Union Station; shops, including Rocky Mountain Chocolate, The Science City Store, The Kansas City Store opening in 2011 and the coming Parisi Coffee; the Gottlieb Planetarium, the largest planetarium
in the area; ; and various temporary museum exhibits including the internationally acclaimed Dead Sea Scrolls
in 2007, Bodies Revealed
in 2008, Dialog in the Dark in 2009, Dinosaurs Unearthed in 2010 and Diana, A Celebration focusing upon Princess Diana in 2011. The Irish Museum and Cultural Center
has been located in the station since March 17, 2007.
The old Union Station Powerhouse building is currently being renovated by the Kansas City Ballet. It will become the ballet's new home and will be known as the Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity
.
In 2002, Amtrak
restored passenger train service to the station. There are currently two trains daily to and from St. Louis, one train daily to Chicago
and one train daily to the southwest (ultimately to Los Angeles
).
Of the twelve Missouri stations served by Amtrak, Kansas City was the second busiest in FY2010, boarding or detraining an average of nearly 400 passengers daily.
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, is one of many union station
Union station
A union station is the term used for a train station where tracks and facilities are shared by two or more railway companies, allowing passengers to connect conveniently between them...
s in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
History
Around the turn of the 20th century, the Kansas City Terminal RailwayKansas City Terminal Railway
The Kansas City Terminal Railway is a Class III railroad terminal railroad that serves as a joint operation of the trunk railroads that serve the Kansas City metropolitan area, the country's second largest rail hub. It is presently operated by the Kaw River Railroad.The Railway was created after a...
, a company controlled by the *12 railroads serving Kansas City, decided that a new location was needed for the train depot. The location at the time was prone to flooding by the Kansas
Kansas River
The Kansas River is a river in northeastern Kansas in the United States. It is the southwestern-most part of the Missouri River drainage, which is in turn the northwestern-most portion of the extensive Mississippi River drainage. Its name come from the Kanza people who once inhabited the area...
and Missouri River
Missouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...
s. A new location was selected south of the central business district, above and away from the floodplain
Floodplain
A floodplain, or flood plain, is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent a stream or river that stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls and experiences flooding during periods of high discharge...
. The architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
chosen to design the building was Jarvis Hunt
Jarvis Hunt
Jarvis Hunt was a "renowned Chicago architect" who designed a wide array of buildings, including train stations, suburban estates, industrial buildings, clubhouses and other structures....
, a proponent of the City Beautiful movement. The design was a main hall for ticketing, and a perpendicular hall extending out over the tracks for passenger waiting. The Beaux-Arts station opened on October 30, 1914 as the second-largest train station in the country. The building encompasses 850,000 square feet (79,000 m²), the ceiling in the Grand Hall is 95 feet (29 m) high, there are three chandeliers weighing 3,500 pounds (1600 kg) each, and the Grand Hall clock has a six-foot (1.8-m) diameter face. Due to its central location, Kansas City was a hub for both passenger and freight rail traffic. The scale of the building reflected this status.
Union Station made headlines on June 17, 1933, as four unarmed FBI agents were gunned down by gang members attempting to free captured fugitive Frank Nash
Frank Nash
Frank Nash has been called “the most successful bank robber in U.S. history,” but he is most noted for his violent death in what has become known as the Kansas City Massacre...
. Nash was also killed in the gun battle. The “Kansas City Massacre
Kansas City Massacre
The Kansas City massacre was the shootout and murder of four law enforcement officers and a criminal fugitive at the Union Station railroad depot in Kansas City, Missouri, on the morning of June 17, 1933. It occurred as part of the attempt by a gang led by Vernon Miller to free Frank "Jelly" Nash,...
” highlighted the lawlessness of Kansas City under the Pendergast Machine
Tom Pendergast
Thomas Joseph Pendergast controlled Kansas City and Jackson County, Missouri as a political boss. "Boss Tom" Pendergast gave workers jobs and helped elect politicians during the Great Depression, becoming wealthy in the process.-Early years:Thomas Joseph Pendergast, also known to close friends as...
and resulted in the arming of all FBI agents.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
redevelopment firm. Included in the deal was an agreement that Trizec would redevelop the station. Between 1979 and 1986, Trizec constructed two office buildings on surrounding property, but did not redevelop the station. In 1985, Amtrak moved all passenger operations to a smaller facility. By this time, the station was essentially closed. In 1988, the city filed suit against Trizec for the failure to develop the station; the case was settled in 1994. For most of this time period, the building continued to decay.
- The 12 railroads that served Union Station Kansas City shortlly after its opening were: Union Pacific, Kansas City Southern, Santa Fe, Rock Island, Katy, Frisco, Wabash, Milwaukee St. Paul and Pacific, Chicago Burlington & Qunicy, Chicago Great Western, Chicago & Alton and the Missouri Pacific. Numerous mergers through the years have left only the Kansas City Southern and the Union Pacific intact in name, neither of which provide passenger service today.
Renovation
In 1996, residents in five counties throughout the metropolitan areaKansas City Metropolitan Area
The Kansas City Metropolitan Area is a fifteen-county metropolitan area that is anchored by Kansas City, Missouri and is bisected by the border between the states of Missouri and Kansas. As of the 2010 Census, the metropolitan area has a population of 2,035,334. The metropolitan area is the...
in both Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
and Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
approved the so-called "bi-state tax", a 1/8 of a cent sales tax
Sales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
, part of which helped to fund just under half of the $250 million restoration of Union Station. Renovation began in 1997 and was completed in 1999. The remaining money was raised through private donations and federal funding.
Today Union Station receives no public funding. Current operating costs are funded by general admission and theater ticketing, grants, corporate and private donations, commercial space leases and facility rental. Union Station is a nonprofit 501c3 organization. Union Station is now home to Science City
Science City at Union Station
Science City at Union Station is a family-friendly interactive science center that features acclaimed traveling exhibitions, Gottlieb Planetarium, City Extreme Screen theatre, and more than 50 hands-on displays....
, a family-friendly interactive science center with more than 50 hands-on exhibits; the H&R Block City Stage Theater, a live-action venue with productions for young and old alike; the Reginer Extreme Screen, the largest 3-D movie screen in the region at five and half stories tall; two restaurants, including Pierponts, an upscale steak and seafood restaurant, and the Harvey's at Union Station; shops, including Rocky Mountain Chocolate, The Science City Store, The Kansas City Store opening in 2011 and the coming Parisi Coffee; the Gottlieb Planetarium, the largest planetarium
Planetarium
A planetarium is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation...
in the area; ; and various temporary museum exhibits including the internationally acclaimed Dead Sea Scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
in 2007, Bodies Revealed
BODIES... The Exhibition
Bodies… The Exhibition is a controversial exhibition showcasing preserved human bodies dissected to display bodily systems. It opened in Tampa, Florida on August 20, 2005...
in 2008, Dialog in the Dark in 2009, Dinosaurs Unearthed in 2010 and Diana, A Celebration focusing upon Princess Diana in 2011. The Irish Museum and Cultural Center
Irish Museum and Cultural Center
The Irish Museum and Cultural Center is the newest addition to the active Irish American community in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. It is a non-profit organization which uses volunteer help. It opened in its current location in Union Station on March 17, 2007, The museum hosts a number of events,...
has been located in the station since March 17, 2007.
The old Union Station Powerhouse building is currently being renovated by the Kansas City Ballet. It will become the ballet's new home and will be known as the Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity
Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity
The Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity, named after the late Todd Bolender, is located in what used to be the Union Station Power House in Kansas City, Missouri. It opened on August 26, 2011. Following extensive renovations on the historic building, it became home for the Kansas City...
.
Current Amtrak service
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
restored passenger train service to the station. There are currently two trains daily to and from St. Louis, one train daily to Chicago
Union Station (Chicago)
Union Station is a major train station that opened in 1925 in Chicago, replacing an earlier 1881 station. It is now the only intercity rail terminal in Chicago, as well as being the city's primary terminal for commuter trains. The station stands on the west side of the Chicago River between Adams...
and one train daily to the southwest (ultimately to Los Angeles
Union Station (Los Angeles)
Los Angeles Union Station is the main railway station in Los Angeles, California. The station has rail services by Amtrak and Amtrak California and Metrolink; light rail/subways are the Metro Rail Red Line, Purple Line, Gold Line. Bus rapid transport runs on the Silver Line...
).
Of the twelve Missouri stations served by Amtrak, Kansas City was the second busiest in FY2010, boarding or detraining an average of nearly 400 passengers daily.