Historic depots across the nation that once bustled with activity but fell into disrepair with the demise of the passenger train are getting multimillion-dollar facelifts and new leases on life.
The aging buildings, many abandoned decades ago, are being rescued from obscurity by enterprising developers who have been converting them into shopping malls, museums, convention centers, marketplaces, business complexes and tourist centers.
One of the latest renovations is in Indianapolis, where the country`s first Union Railway Station was built in 1853.
The depot was conceived by the Indianapolis Union Railway Co., the first private rail lines to build and share track and facilities in the same stations, a concept quickly adopted across the nation.
Developer Robert Borns is converting the 73-year-old train shed into a hotel, the 98-year-old head house into restaurants and shops and 13 Pullman rail cars into 26 hotel rooms–a facelift costing more than $50 million.
Though similar projects have succeeded, the prospect of investing millions in the old depot, which had collected four feet of debris and has suffered from a leaking roof for nearly 10 years, ”was somewhat scary at first,” said Borns` wife, Sandra.
”To look at this decrepit, old, beat-up building and think that we could bring it back to life was a challenge,” she said.
It was a challenge not envied by other builders. When his group bid on Union Station, there was no competition, Borns said.
Jim Dora, a partner in the Holiday Inn hotel venture, said he also was apprehensive about taking on such a large, chancy project.
”The entire thing is full of risks because no one ever has, to my knowledge, built a hotel inside a (train) shed before,” he said. ”We were anxious to come downtown, and this seemed like a unique and interesting thing, but I don`t know if it makes as much business sense as it does common sense.” Despite the risks, the developers remained optimistic.
The growing downtown Indianapolis area might provide the fuel for the venture to succeed, Borns said.
”It has all the components to be successful,” he said, citing the nearby domed football stadium and interstate highways as lures.
”We realized that Union Station would be a success if restored properly,” Mrs. Borns said. ”Through research, we learned about the market for such a complex, and found, among other things, that there are 4.8 million people within a two-hour drive of downtown.”
Retailers and restaurateurs signing leases seem to share the Borns`
optimism. Nearly 95 percent of the leases have been signed.
This April, the red brick and white granite building will be ready to open to the public once again.
For visitors who remember the station when travelers stormed through its halls, reminiscing will come easy.
Daylight again will filter through the two original 2,200 square feet stained-glass wheel windows on the south and north ends of the head house and the round stained-glass window in the ceiling.
Intricate artwork along the walls will be exposed in its original form.
Cast iron underground beams, to help support the train shed, also are utilized in shops and restaurants.
