BUSINESS PUFFERY NEVER CHANGES.

The renovation of Milwaukee's railroad station, soon to be the Greyhound station as well (what about the Badger Bus?) will be done in time for Thanksgiving. Two weeks ago, the project looked like this.


The news report looks forward to completion.

The $15.8 million remodeling project enlarges Amtrak's 1965 bunker-like station by 7,500 square feet, adds a three-story glass atrium and rejiggers space.

Funny how things change. In 1965, the new station, in a style the designer referred to as "Modern Renaissance," was anticipated as a replacement for the Everett Street station. The only lasting improvement was the provision of pedestrian underpasses to tracks 2,3,4, and 5. At the 1996 station, passengers had to cross live tracks to get to trains waiting on 2, 3, 4, and 5.

"For the million people who come though this station every year, this is a real opportunity to provide a welcoming experience - a brand new front door to the city," [Milwaukee redevelopment spokesman Joel] Brennan said.

The prospect of a sunny, spacious transit center has sparked interest from local food and beverage retailers, the city official said, and some contracts are in the works.

Although the station is still cut off from Grand Avenue by an expressway viaduct, there are some retail and entertainment destinations just east of the station, and the Walker's Point tavern district and a cluster of Mexican restaurants are just the other side of the Sixth Street viaduct.

If you know where to look, there is still evidence of the old station.


I'm standing in about the same spot where my dad took this picture in 1940.