Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday that the Transportation Department will move to exert “renewed control” over Washington’s Union Station, saying the soaring train depot just blocks from the U.S. Capitol has become known “more as a center for vagrancy than a hub for commerce and travel.”
“We’re going to take Union Station back under DOT control,” Duffy said during a press conference related to Amtrak’s new high-speed trains Wednesday morning. He added that it’s “not a power play. We’ve always had it, but we think we can manage the property better.”
Though Duffy’s pitch is aimed at cleaning up crime, homelessness and grime, the real prize for President Donald Trump, who has been eager to redevelop all manner of federal properties, may be what’s buried in DOT’s accompanying announcement — a desire to “leverage [Union Station’s] valuable commercial aspects.”
Duffy said he believes DOT’s takeover will increase the station’s income and entice more development and investments in the building as a result. In its reasoning for the change, DOT said it expects “improved security” will also play a role in drawing in more private investors for a “potential expansion of the station.”
