Washington, DC

Washington Union Station in the District of Columbia was designed by the esteemed architectural firm of Daniel Burnham & Company and was constructed by the Washington Terminal Company between 1903 and 1908. This monumental Beaux-Arts train station is the gateway to our nation’s capital and serves more than 100,000 visitors a day. The station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1969.

Union Station Redevelopment Corporation (USRC), stewards of Union Station since 1983, selected BCA to lead the development of a historic preservation plan for the Washington Union Station complex. The development of the plan was a joint initiative lead by USRC, Union Station Investco, Amtrak, and Akridge, and was designed to create a framework for future historic preservation efforts.

BCA conducted archival research and created a catalog of historical information as well as an alterations chronology for the station building and terminal rail yard. BCA then performed a survey of physical conditions for all historic resources in and around the station complex in order to develop a comprehensive significance assessment and treatment/design recommendation for the station’s second century. BCA coordinated with the project team to keep key stakeholders engaged in the development of the plan.

BCA has also prepared documentation as part of the NEPA/Section 106 process for two recent projects at Union Station: the relocation of the Amtrak Police Department and the Concourse HVAC Equipment Relocation.

BCA also conducted a research study to document the historic interior lighting design and place it into the context of the innovative lighting theory and technology of the early 20th century.