Union Station Chicago Competition : Architecture

CHICAGO UNION STATION Competition entry by Graft Union Station 2020 : A Crossroads for the High-Speed Rail City, USA Organization: The Chicago Architectural Club An outer perimeter of chaotic speed, overlaid with a calm center. Historically the train station, a singular program, has had to be a large place, a funnel, a bottleneck to siphon the masses into their respective slots for boarding. The train station was a destination for those wishing to leave their present destination. Present examples of all types of ports of departure try to distract or entertain the traveler. The traveler must pass through a gauntlet of museum annexes, shops and weave their way slowly, time-consumingly to their point of departure. Our proposal will treat the user group as two: the traveler and the inhabitant. The traveler has a destination, a purpose, a need to get through the process as efficiently as possible. The penetration into the site will be minimal; the tickets purchased in route, the space and time between the city and the speed corridor out of the city minimal. The personal vehicle becomes the station, the station merely an access point; a promise to distant possibilities. The inhabitant. Seeking an extended stay; the coffee shop, the Sunday morning market, life anchored to the city. The station becomes a rock jutting out of a raging river. The place of the inhabitant is at the center of the chaos, a place to better experience the city, a place to relax, a place to watch the chaos unfold. A space reserved for those staying, not for those leaving. The station serves as infrastructure for the city. It’s not a singular building, a place confined by boundaries. The interface with the city is blurred, inside and outside undefined. The building becomes a neighborhood. Union Station Chicago Entry images / information from Graft, Architects