Science City at Union Station

Kansas City, MO

Built in 1914 as the second largest train station in the nation, Union Station had fallen on hard times by the 1980s, and lost its once-vital role in downtown Kansas City. EE&K’s design re-establishes Union Station as a major intermodal transit hub for the city and creates a vital new “place” for the downtown.

The key element of EE&K’s vision for recasting Union Station as a new transportation hub is a new enclosed pedestrian walkway, nicknamed “the Link,” which connects Science City to the proposed light rail system; the nearby hotels, retail, and office buildings of Crown Center; and surrounding parks. A plaza and glass canopy, also connected by the Link, creates a new station for intercity buses and entrance on the Station’s east side.

The revitalization also includes restoration of the Station’s landmarked former horse and carriage drop-off for adaptation into a hub for local buses, trolleys, and shuttles; and a new 350-car below grade parking garage. The adaptive reuse of the historic headhouse as a science museum anchors a new cluster of restaurants and retail. A highway and parking lot is now transformed into a new arrival and forecourt extending the beaux-arts Liberty Memorial Park to the museum entrance.

For more on Science City click here.