Are there underground cities in the US?

Answer 1

An underground city is a network of tunnels that connect buildings, usually in the downtown area of a city. These may include office blocks, shopping malls, train and metro stations, theaters, and other attractions.

* Atlanta, Georgia - Atlanta's "Underground" actually represents the original surface level of downtown Atlanta; the present streets are in fact raised roadways (viaducts) built in the 1920s. The shopping center Underground Atlanta, taking advantage of the former street-level storefronts, covers six city blocks, and includes retail shopping and restaurants. It was begun in 1968, and reopened in 1989 after a financially-forced closure.

* Chicago, Illinois - (Chicago Pedway) consists of approximately 4 disjoint tunnel systems, the largest covering about 10 blocks, connecting such buildings and transit stations as Metra's Randolph Street Station, the Chicago Cultural Center, the Macy's store at State and Randolph, Chicago Transit Authority's State Street and Dearborn Street subway stations, City Hall, and the James R. Thompson Center.

* Crystal City, Virginia - An unincorporated residential and commercial area next to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Crystal City features an extensive underground city connecting its hotels, office buildings, and apartment towers.

* Dallas, Texas has a network of tunnels connecting various buildings in the downtown area.

* Walt Disney World, Florida (South-West of Orlando, Florida) has a network of tunnels utilized by its employees (Cast Members) for transportation between venues, rest, staff preparation, and first aid. Some of the rest facilities resemble a small hotel room complete with a small kitchen.

* Duluth, Minnesota has a small network of skyways and tunnels connecting some buildings, including the Federal Courthouse and Convention Center (DECC).

* Havre, Montana - Throughout its history, the Havre Underground has been host to a brothel, a Chinese laundromat, a saloon, a drugstore, at least three opium dens, and rooms used for smuggling alcohol during Prohibition. It is now a preserved piece of the region's history.

* Houston, Texas [6] -Set about twenty feet below Houston's downtown street system, today's seven mile Tunnel is a series of underground passageways which, with above-ground skywalks, link office towers to hotels, banks, corporate and government offices, restaurants, retail stores, and the Theater District. Only one building, Wells Fargo Plaza, offers direct access from the street to the Tunnel; otherwise, you must enter the Tunnel from street-level stairs, escalators, or elevators located inside a building connected to the Tunnel.

* Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota - There are three major systems consisting mostly of above-ground skyways in the Twin Cities. Minneapolis's skyway system covers approximately five miles with 62 skyways. [7] St. Paul's skyway system connects buildings in a 30-block radius in the downtown core. [8] On the University of Minnesota campus, the Gopher Way connects most buildings and parking structures together using a number of skyway links and underground tunnels.

* New York, New York - Several subway stations have direct access to one or more buildings. Additionally, most of the lower floor of Rockefeller Center qualifies as an underground city, as it features connections to subways, an extensive underground concourse, building connections, and several restaurants, all below ground.

* Oklahoma City, Oklahoma The Metro Conncourse, named after its founder, Jack Conn, is an underground tunnel system connecting nearly all the downtown buildings in a 20-square-block area. The Conncourse is one of the most extensive all-enclosed pedestrian systems in the country, extending three-quarters of a mile and connecting over 30 downtown buildings by tunnel or skyway. The original tunnel link was built in 1931 and the system was extended in the 1970s. Offices, shops, and restaurants line the Conncourse system. It is scheduled to undergo a $2 million renovation in 2006. Upon completion of the renovation, the plan calls for the Conncourse to be renamed the Underground.

* Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - There are several underground concourses in Center City built around and including parts of Suburban Station, Market East Station, the Market-Frankford Line, and Broad Street Line. It is possible to walk from 8th Street to 18th Street east to west and Arch Street to Spruce Street north to south.

* Richmond, Virginia - There are a series of connected tunnels between state government buildings in the city of Richmond. Certain passageways are locked off but a good portion of the tunnels are accessible from different buildings. The purpose of the tunnels is not generally known; the two most common explanations are that they were built to allow people to move between buildings in inclement weather or that they were built as part of an emergency evacuation plan.

* Rochester, Minnesota - The Mayo Clinic's various buildings in the downtown area are interconnected with tunnels and skyways. Various other businesses also exist along the corridors, including a number of hotels that often house clinic patients. It is often called a subway, although there are no underground rails in the city.

* Rochester, New York- Nazareth College in the southeast portion of Rochester has an extensive underground network of tunnels leading from the dormitories to the major buildings on campus.

* Seattle, Washington - Several modern undergrounds and a historical tour exist. The main shopping district around Westlake has an underground connected with the bus tunnel. Another substantial corridor extends from Two Union Square to Rainier Square with connections to hotels, the 5th Avenue Theatre, and many retail shops along the way. The Seattle Underground Tour in Pioneer Square takes visitors on a humorous guided walk showing the original ground level of many buildings in that area.