A Kansas City Ballet Nutcracker rehearsal at the Bolender Center; photo by Keith Myers

The $32 million renovation project that transformed Union Station’s dilapidated former power plant into the stunning new home of the Kansas City Ballet has been honored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

The Kansas City Star reports that The National Trust awarded its preservation honor award for the “conscientious transformation” of the brick building that now houses the Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity.

The 52,000-square-foot structure, which opened in 1914 as a coal-fired power plant, had been vacant since the 1970s. The renovated building opened in September 2011.

Jeffrey Bentley, executive director of the ballet, said the company was delighted with its new home. “When we first looked at the building, we knew it met all the requirements for a new home for us,” Bentley said in a statement. “But standing there looking at the decay of the abandoned Power House and trying to envision the building filled with dancers and children and creative beauty made it seem like an outlandish idea.

“We couldn’t be happier with the results.”

To read the full story, visit http://www.kansascity.com/2012/10/30/3893228/ballet-home-gets-historic-preservation.html#storylink=cpy.