PROJECT PORTFOLIO

In 1988, after an extensive national competition, Williams Jackson Ewing and Jones Lasalle Partners were selected to redevelop the deteriorating, eighty-year-old Union Station. This “White Elephant” was costing tax payers more than $1 million per year to keep boarded up, while toadstools grew through the marble floors and water damage was destroying the landmark’s majestic ceilings. Their vision was to create a program that would bring the abandoned national landmark back to its former glory and allow the property to turn a profit for American taxpayers.

Williams Jackson Ewing developed and implemented the retail concept, which included 125 stores and restaurants. Union Station's beautiful public spaces now serve the nation's Capital as a thriving transportation hub and retail center filled with a variety of national retailers, local merchants and dining establishments.

In 1989, WJE was awarded a National Preservation Award from The National Trust for Historic Preservation and in 1991, an Urban Land Institute Special Award for their part in the restoration of the landmark project that sparked the District's renaissance.

The Station serves as a hub for special events including Inaugural Balls, art exhibits, and concerts which include a holiday show by the National Symphony Orchestra. The project attracts 35 million visitors every year, resulting in a social and financial success for surrounding neighborhoods, local businesses, and federal taxpayers. 

Union Station was sold to Ashkenazy Acquisition Corporation in 2007.