Big news: In New York City, the High Line at the Rail Yards - the third and northernmost section of the park - is now open to the public!
New York’s extraordinary elevated public space now extends nearly 1.5 miles from Gansevoort Street to West 34th. You can experience the city from a different perspective as the High Line takes a big swing west toward the Hudson River around old railroad yards.
In this last and final section of the park to open, part of the old rail line that was abandoned years ago is left intact.
The landscape planting plan was done by Dutch designer Piet Oudolf who left the rusted tracks filled with Queen Anne's lace, chokecherry, milkweed -which is just what you'd expect to find in an abandoned lot.
In addition, there are benches and picnic tables, a spacious plaza and a place where children can explore. It was designed by James Corner Field Operations (with Diller Scofidio & Renfro).
In 1934 the High Line was opened as a way to allow freight trains to carry goods overhead from 34th Street to a terminal at Spring Street.
The last train ran in 1980 and the tracks were being prepared for demolition when Peter Obletz, a Chelsea resident and railroad enthusiast, challenged demolition efforts in court.
In 1999, Friends of the High Line was founded by Joshua David and Robert Hammond, residents of the High Line neighborhood. They advocated for the High Line’s reuse as a public open space. In 2009, Section 1 (Gansevoort Street to West 20th Street) opened to the public.
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| High Line phase 1 |
And now in 2014, the third and northernmost section of the park, the High Line at the Rail Yards, is open, 80 years after it was originally built. Yay for 'adaptive reuse'! My only complaint is that they don't label the plants and some of us go crazy trying to identify them (me)...
For more photos click here.
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