Just a flight of stairs and you too can free yourself from the hustle and bustle of New York City. Located in Manhattan’s West Side, running from Gansevoort in the Meatpacking District up to West 34th is New York City’s High Line, a linear park built on a historic freight rail line above city streets. Opening in 2009, the High Line illustrates a really good example of sustainable redevelopment, incorporating existing structures of the abandoned railroad into the architecture and design of the park. Although many may deem this irrelevant or contradictory to our studies of High Speed Rail and public commuter rail in the United States, the mentality here, where sustainable urbanism and development in all its forms coexist, is ideologically in tandem with increased usage of public transportation in search of a smaller carbon footprint. That, in addition to providing patrons to the park an opportunity to participate in and appreciate nature and art, as noted by the sculpture series on display during our visit, as well as the art vendors peddling their creations, ranging from postcards and wall-hangings to screen-printed t-shirts.
Our walk through the High Line took us away from the joltingly fast-paced lifestyle of the streets below, onto a retreat where we could walk through nature and appreciate art, even while still surrounded by apartments and skyscrapers. The High Line makes sure to rotate the plants throughout the park so that they reflect what should be in season whenever you visit. Our January visit took us through some holly bushes, for example, as well as many small trees, bare from the winter’s frost. It seems many of the plants have suffered from the Polar Vortex that took the East Coast by storm only a week before our visit to the East Coast.
Due to the season, some of the High Line’s features were not in order (like the water feature running in the middle of the park) but the modern architecture and benches, as well as the conscious decision of running the wooden planks lengthwise to mimic the length of the railroad that existed before, portray a pinnacle of sustainable redevelopment, ensuring that a visit to New York is hardly a visit without a break at the High Line.
A Linear stroll
through
New york's high line
"Our walk through the High Line took us away from the joltingly fast-paced lifestyle of the streets below."
27 High Line