(rshsdepot) Chicago, IL (Union Station)

[I95BERNIEW_@_aol.com]

From the GateHouse News Service.
 
Bernie Wagenblast
 
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 
Blazing a new rail for Union  Station


Blazing a new rail for Union Station  
_http://www.dailysouthtown.com/news/506405,111NWS4.article_ 
(http://www.dailysouthtown.com/news/506405,111NWS4.article)  
August 11, 2007  
By Mike Ramsey GateHouse News Service  
With its marble floors, Corinthian columns and soaring barrel-vaulted ceiling 
 of glass, the Great Hall of Chicago`s Union Station has served as a hub for  
train travelers since opening in 1925, when passenger rail was approaching 
its  zenith in the United States.  
But today, the cavernous interior used to great effect in a shootout scene in 
 1987`s ``The Untouchables`` is relatively quiet and slightly run-down.  
That is expected to change, with the advancing plans being pushed by a team  
of redevelopers and Amtrak, which owns the Great Hall.  
If all goes well for them, the beaux arts structure at Canal Street and  
Jackson Boulevard -- technically known as the ``Headhouse`` building of the  
larger Union Station complex -- will get an 18-floor addition on top and become  a 
mixed-use center with offices, residences, hotel rooms, retail space and  
restaurants.  
The project could cost $457 million.  
Passenger-rail advocates are cautious about the plan. They say the Great  
Hall`s earlier purpose as a haven for train riders should not get lost among the  
bells and whistles of the project.  
Rick Harnish, the Chicago-based rail advocate who last year helped to  
convince lawmakers to double Amtrak service within Illinois, is critical of the  way 
the Great Hall now is used -- or to him, underused. He said Amtrak  
passengers effectively have been nudged to the railroad`s newer, but frequently  
crowded, boarding lounge.  
The lounge and Amtrak service booths are located east of the Great Hall,  
under a modern high-rise that replaced a Headhouse companion structure known as  
the Concourse.  
Occasionally, Harnish said, the Great Hall is cleared of its benches, forcing 
 travelers who want to wait there to plop down on the floor like ``hobos.``  
``The room is screaming, `Passenger trains are going away,` `` said Harnish,  
executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association. ``It`s like  
they`ve had a going-out-of-business sale.``  
He said he would like to see amenities in the Great Hall that include  
bathrooms, retail stalls, ticket booths and easy-to-read status reports of train  
arrivals and departures. Currently, there is a central kiosk with small  
electronic monitors that relay schedule information about Amtrak and Metra, the  
suburban commuter rail system that uses another portion of Union Station.  
A resolution passed earlier this year by directors of the National  
Association of Railroad Passengers in Washington expressed alarm that the Great  Hall 
may be ``converted to retail space in a manner that renders it unusable for  
train passengers.``  
Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said that fear is unfounded. He said the Great 
 Hall redevelopment would include improvements, including climate controls,  
geared toward waiting travelers.  
Amtrak passengers approached Wednesday in the Great Hall indicated they don`t 
 think the space needs much more to make it inviting to travelers.  
``The No. 1 thing is air conditioning,`` said Allan Henderson, of Kearny,  
N.J., a retired letter carrier. ``Retail -- I couldn`t care less.``  
Sheila Stafford, of Janesville, Wis., said displaying some information about  
the history of the building would be nice. Anything more than that might make 
 the hall cluttered, she said.  
``I just like to see the beauty of the building,`` Stafford said. 



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