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Union Station brings together range of businesses

By David Irvin
Montgomery Advertiser

You don't have to spend much time in Montgomery before noticing a big red building down by the train tracks.

Once visited by presidents and music stars, the gaunt Union Station has stared across downtown Montgomery for more than a century. When airplanes took over as the way to get around, the train station eventually went vacant and fell into disrepair around mid-century.

Even a year and a half ago, the building -- which is listed as a national historic landmark -- only had four tenants, said Willie D. Peak Jr., who manages the property for the city.

Today, the building has 22 tenants, many occupying multiple units, and more than 25 potential tenants waiting in line. Lawyers, accountants, bridal shops, ad agencies, a tour agency and a ministerial alliance -- organizations of all types have set up in the train depot.

But perhaps the biggest recent development is a brand new salon and day spa called Paragón, which offers a variety of services -- from $20 haircuts to $600 extensions. The salon is holding its grand opening Monday.

"Basically (the owner) chose it because of the riverfront renovations," said Debra Anderson, the manager of Paragón.

The salon is split between a third-floor and fourth-floor loft. Customers on the top level can look out across the river as they have their hair primped, sculpted or extended.

The space is open inside the depot, with tall ceilings and an unconventional floor plan that allows for great intermixing between the clients of one business and the principals of another.

For instance, a couple of accountants have offices virtually inside Paragón, just feet away from a lounge area in what used to be the attic of the depot.

Just down the hall, another brand new tenant was working hard Monday. The Ad Associates, a firm that brings together three firms in the Montgomery marketing business, has just moved into a fourth-floor suite.

"Even though they redid it, they kept the same feel and the integrity of the architectural design of a building of this era," Gina Dickinson, a senior partner in the firm, said in her new office she moved into this month.

She said the downtown area is fast becoming the hot place for businesses, with the revitalization of the old Montgomery area around Coosa and Bibb streets, and the economic injection that came along with Riverwalk Stadium just a few blocks away.

But that hip flare of the train station has only so much to do with it.

Another thing going for the building is the rate the city of Montgomery charges for the space. Management and lessees agreed, the rates available in the shed are very competitive -- about $13 to $15 per square foot.

One office, about 14 by 14 feet, goes for $229 a month on a one-year lease.

Built in 1898, the train depot is one of the "larger and more elaborate" stations still standing in the South, according to the Alabama Historical Commission. Costing $200,000 to build, the station served as the major point of entry and exit from Montgomery for decades.

The advent of air travel ended that, but throughout the years President Theodore Roosevelt and many celebrities crossed into Montgomery there. As late as 1960, President Lyndon Johnson made a whistle stop during a presidential campaign.

In the early 1970s, the state put a big push on to get the station recognized as a historically significant site. In 1973, it was added to the United States historic list and in 1977 it became Alabama's 18th National Historic Landmark.

One of the oldest tenants, Lek's Railroad Thai restaurant has been in the station since the 1990s.

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