Citizens of Ogden gathered at the Two Bit Cafe on 25th Street on June 17 to hear what mayoral candidates in the upcoming election had to say about Union Station.

What to do about Union Station has been a popular issue in Ogden in recent years. Earlier that week, the public got its first chance to provide feedback on what they wanted to see happen to Union Station. Mayoral candidates at the Two Bit Cafe explained how they would implement that feedback.

All candidates were invited to this public forum event, but only half of them actually attended. Angel Castillo, Taylor Knuth, Jon Greiner and Ben Nadolski were given five minutes to share their plans and then had a short Q&A session following their comments. These candidates were moderated by Radio station X96 host Bill Allred.

Castillo was first on hand to deliver her remarks. She said that when she first arrived in Ogden as a cyclist, she was moved by the people of Ogden, who were enthusiastic about her arrival there.

“Ogden is a community that drew me in apart from the mountains,” Castillo said. “Union Station is a part of who we are. It belongs here.”

Castillo said Union Station would continue to be a pillar of the community, hoping to make it an addition to Weber State University as a satellite campus.

Knuth spoke second to give his remarks. Knuth spoke of making Union Station not only a valued pillar of community, but an essential one.

Knuth said he would work with UTA to make Union Station an essential stop for the FrontRunner commuter train. As of right now, the FrontRunner only passes Union Station on the way to the Ogden UTA Station.

Knuth said he differs from Castillo, who has attended many city council meetings, by going and meeting with many people on their doorstep.

“Local government is an aircraft carrier, not a speedboat,” Knuth said. “It needs as many people as possible.”

Grenier was next to speak. Grenier, while not offering a lot of solutions, did reveal what the city’s plans have been regarding Union Station.

“What [that future is] going to look like, I think, is anybody’s guess at this point,” Grenier said. “There’s no set of plans, there’s no drawings, there’s no nothing — we were just barely acquiring the ground, and that was the most important piece because the lease was going to run out in three or four years.”

Nadolski rounded out the evening with his vision for Union Station. “People first” was his campaign for Union Station and all things regarding his campaign.

“We need to own all of our history, not just a part of it,” Nadolski said.