[mcathyslby]

Hi Vince Ferrer,

Thank you so much for the update on the Union Station. We were really impressed by the beautiful structure. We hope to return someday. We got there in the early hours and there was only one guard. He took us around and explained where everything was like bathrooms, coffee, and snacks. He explained so much about the history. He was a very sweet man. Again, thank you, Sir. My husband thinks it is neat that it is a hub now.

[Vince Ferrer]

I grew up in the Denver area, and when I was in middle school I used to go down to Union Station to catch the ski train up to the Winter Park ski area. At that time, Union Station stood nearly alone in a mess of abandoned warehouses and a big nearly empty train yard. Even then I loved the building and wanted to buy it myself and refurbish it. The only people using the building was Amtrak.

Now I work in downtown Denver, and the transformation around the station has been phenomenal. Union Station has been refurbished, but it is still a working train station. The same Amtrak office you were at is still there. But there are restaurants, stores, and the second floor is a hotel. Outside the doors are the rail lines. Most light rail coming to downtown connects here, which includes the new commuter rail line from the airport. Amtrak as well. Also, underneath the rail lines is an underground bus terminal that is the destination for 22 bus routes. You can get anywhere from there.

For most of my life I have hated the Denver bus system, because it never worked, but today is a different story, at least for commuters going downtown. The Union Station hub has been so successful the real estate around it has become some of the most valuable in the state.