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Photo by Scott Herndon
Vaughn Sterling tweets:
“what the heck happened to Kabuki Sushi in @UnionStation_DC? Replaced by a blue wall! We’ve been going since 2005!”
Anyone know when they closed? Being taken over by the new Walgreens? Any other fans?
Courtesy Union Station Redevelopment Corporation
From a press release:
“Today, Washington Union Station reveals a restored, historic Main Hall. Covered for the past four years in scaffolding as rehabilitation work was underway, the historic space is now unobstructed, as originally designed, for the first time in almost 50 years.
Opened in 1907 as the General Waiting Room of the station, the Main Hall was well known for its impressive scale, stretching 219 feet by 120 feet, with a ceiling height of 96 feet, and grand gold-coffered ceiling. Historically lined with mahogany benches, the Main Hall functioned as large open space until the 1940’s. The onset of World War II resulted in increased traffic at the station, and ticket counters were expanded from the West Hall into the Main Hall, to accommodate the demand. In the 1970’s as train travel declined, and air travel became more popular, ideas to reactivate the grand space were evaluated. (more…)
Thanks to a reader for passing on from Bikestation:
“Bikestation DC members: the Bike and Roll mechanics report that some of their fleet bikes were stolen this week overnight when their cable lock(s) were cut.
The parking room will now only be open during staffed hours M-Sa (7AM – 7PM) and Su (8Am – 7PM) until further notice.
Please report if you saw any suspicious activities inside such as loitering to us or the onsite staff.
All member bikes parked must be:
– securely locked to the rack with a u-lock or better. AND
– must have a current Bikestation parking sticker on the frame.
Double check your records to make sure you have a photo of your bike and your bike data: make, model, year and frame number on your smart phone.
The Bike and Roll staff (BnR) have given us an update on what they found today when the Bikestation DC opened.
The BnR fleet bikes were taken again. And other bikes [not locked to racks?] were moved around and onto other bikes.
We need ALL members to visit the Bikestation during shop hours to check on their bike.
BnR staff will also be physically locking the doors at night until this is resolved.
Bikestation will not be able to over ride this lock down remotely. So you MUST remove any bike that you need to ride when the shop is closed.”
Future Concept: View from Au Bon Pain looking East.
From Amtrak:
“Amtrak is advancing a near-term comprehensive renovation of Washington Union Station’s intercity and commuter rail concourse, which will add approximately 20,000 square feet of new passenger space – nearly doubling the concourse’s current capacity.
Design is underway to upgrade passenger amenities including new restrooms, boarding gates, seating and a ClubAcela lounge. The design will also include new architectural features and natural light elements to enliven the space for travelers. The result will be a vastly reconfigured, modernized and unified concourse that will improve the passenger experience by providing better accessibility, circulation, wayfinding and multimodal connectivity. Amtrak today unveiled two conceptual renderings of the renovation.
While Union Station has served the region well for over a century, it is now operating beyond its capacity, particularly during rush hours and peak travel times. As such, implementing near-term solutions to gain capacity and alleviate congestion is imperative to maintaining safe and efficient station operations. (more…)
At long last our Union Station operative reports:
“Walgreens is open! (Cue flashing red light emoji!)”
Reasonable priced potato chips, batteries, magazines and hair conditioner for all rail travelers!!
“Dear PoPville,
Any idea what the delay is with the opening of Walgreens at Union Station? It’s looked ready for a while. Any information would be most appreciated by those of us who work/live nearby or travel through.”
One of our Union Station operatives reported on Friday:
“I spoke to a customer service rep. She claimed that they would be opening [this] “next week” but could not give me more information. She also could not provide any information about why there has been such a delay in opening. We will see whether this actually pans out!”
Inexplicably, still waiting on Walgreens [Tony T Goodman notes the shelves are fully stocked and Amanda says “I’ve hung around on multiple days to ask workers when it’s opening, and I’ve gotten all kinds of (ultimately false) answers.”],to open but Famiglia Pizzeria:
and Lotus Express are now open:
This was Sunday afternoon. I’ve never seen the line get all the way back here. Started curving around the Pret a Manager. For those who hit the road, hope everyone had relatively easy travels!
It’s located in the food court in the lower level by the metro entrance. Nice.
