Union Depot

I was stuck for 4 hours here from 7 am to 11 am after getting off my Amtrak train and then waiting for my bus. I put a pillow on my lap and tried to fall asleep with my feet on the ground, head in my lap, and was woken up to a security guard repeatedly kicking my chair until I woke up and telling me ‘you can’t sleep in here’. This is a major transfer hub, people are here for hours at a time. I get not wanting people to lay on the seats, but this is ridiculous. Honestly, everything here is designed around thwarting homeless people. The chairs are single seats with plastic armrests, they got rid of the comfy couches they used to have because of it. I honestly completely dread stopping here whenever I travel now because I know I’ll be sleep deprived but literally forced to keep myself awake for hours lest some gung-​ho security guard start kicking my chair because I’m dozing off.

I have not been here since the old Lee Ann Chins was here. It is a beautiful space. Lovely, spacious and so clean. There were a number of people cleaning the glass on the escalators the day we were there.
It looks so nice with all the Christmas decorations.
Parking was a little dicey and full, but if you’re lucky to find some street parking not a biggie to walk to.
Lots of different events happening here. Nice to see this place again.

The new depot is beautiful and LEED certified. Way to work on sustainability Saint Paul! I’ve been here for the cookie sale, getting dropped off by the Megabus and just recently the European holiday market. The far south building is where parking and bus pick ups/​drop offs are. They have a connecting skyway that goes into the depot itself which is the west end.
It’s a great space with a lot of cool locally commissioned art work and artifacts found. They also have some hanging installations throughout the buildings. The cookie sale takes place inside the main building while the European Holiday market was outside on the east building.
There are plenty of directional signs and seating for folks to rest. If you have car2go or zip car they are parked off Kellogg on the ground floor of the parking lot for Union Depot. All around it’s a great spot to explore and for events.

Lovely station and building but apart from a Greek Restaurant there are no food counters to get sandwiches and snacks. Seriously, why would you have this massive commuter hub with no shops or kiosks for travellers?

Amazing job with keeping the history at the union depot. I love the free yoga on Tuesdays and Saturdays, the union also hosts frequent free events salsa dancing etc.

Union Depot is amazing. The building, the architecture, and the art work should not be missed. The fact that it is all there to serve trains that were introduced in the 50s running on track beds that were laid in the 20s adds an amazing charm. Do not go and do not use the train if patience is not a good friend. We came back from Chicago last night. Some other weary travelers thought they were a 5 minute walk from the Millennium Hotel in Minneapolis. The checked luggage took 30 minutes to make it about 100 feet from the train to baggage claim. Baggage claim area is quite small. All 50 people that were there wanted their luggage first. One woman in front of me took great offense about being pushed by someone else. I had to grab a grandma by he shoulders to keep
Her from toppling over backwards. Complete chaos. Trip was good but would have been way better if, as was the plan, they had taken the money for high speed rail service between Chicago and St. Louis and used it for the high speed service between St. Paul and Chicago but the bone head governor of Wisconsin said there will be no trains on my watch. After all, if we could move people quickly and efficiently, I guess he presumes that it would be a communist plot. I say in class all of the time that only communists use the train. When the green line went into service, I stood outside with a sign that said «no republican can take the train». But, I digress and joke. Union Depot is great. Just wish they could fix crunch time over luggage and buy a train that hasn’t been in use for 75 years.

Fun place to chill and read a book. Love the architecture and how it’s still used as a transit hub.
My only huge pet peeve is that restaurant right In the lobby. Does it really need to be there or take up that much space? No. No it does not. On top of that it’s really noises and plays music way too loud. Get rid of it. Replace it with cute little food stands or turn the space into an art gallery.
Love this place though.

This space is GORGEOUS!
I cannot comment on how the area looked before, but it really is a gorgeous space. And as Mary B has said there certainly is a «grand feel» to the Union Depot — almost like taking you briefly back in time, wondering of how the hustle & bustle was of times gone by. (That would have been so cool to see.)
But the large waiting area holds passengers for the Amtrak & Jefferson Lines (bus service). Perhaps it may house a few temporary passengers for the Green Light-​rail line as well; but for my experience it was for an Amtrak ride.
Because I had purchased a sleeper car, I had access to Amtrak’s private waiting area. There were only 3 of us in there — — plenty of room, a couple TV’s, and some coffee brewing as well. (I didn’t try.)
The larger, open waiting area also housed a bunch of chairs –I think I heard a ping-​pong table??, and some TV’s. So seems to be an upgraded waiting area too.
And I think there may have been some vending machines near the entrance too.
This space would certainly be perfect for private event or corporate functions — cool idea! Now I can see why there were a few concerts & art displays here when it re-​opened.

The renovation of Union Depot is wonderful. I appreciate that the building has been kept in a historic style. The waiting area has arms on the bench, a nice nod to the historic building. Train stations had benches with arms to prevent people from sleeping in them. The grand feel of the building reminds me of Union Station in Chicago. The Resturant in the main lobby feels natural in the space. The acoustics were good and I could hear my table conversation. I was surprised that the sound was that good. I have been in other spaces that are similar with horrible acoustics.
Overall a well done space and I can’t wait to be back. Having the Metro Green line and Amtrack train stop there it has become the transit hub it was built for.

I never visited before the redesign so I can’t compare but when I did go to a game night I could see why the waiting room could be a good venue for unique art displays and concerts. It was very spacious and clean. Free WiFi was a plus and my boyfriend and I tried the Greek restaurant within the depot. The food was decent but it was a little noisy since there was a MNDOT event the same night. My only complaint would be parking is kind of tight.