Designs Unveiled for West Side’s New Elevated Park

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

Friends of the High Line and city officials have unveiled new designs for the West Side High Line that include completed plans for the first two sections of what will be the city’s only elevated park.

The High Line, a 1.45-mile stretch of railroad tracks sitting between 18 feet and 30 feet above street level on steel beams — runs along Manhattan’s West Side between Gansevoort and 34th streets. The parks commissioner, Adrian Benepe, the city planning commissioner, Amanda Burden, and the project’s proponents and designers yesterday presented updated designs for section one and the first public images of section two.

Spanning 10 city blocks, section two will begin at 20th Street and Tenth Avenue and run north to 30th Street. It is the narrowest, straightest portion of the High Line, but that belies its complexity, principals of the design teams Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro, James Corner and Ricardo Scofidio, said.

Computer design renderings of section two show it broken into five areas, each of which will exhibit a different style of architecture and planting, its designers said. They plan calls for visitors to walk along a path made of elongated concrete slabs that will meander through a “Chelsea thicket” with shrubs and small trees, a lawn area above 22nd Street, and a meadow.

At its most fanciful, the design calls for a woodland area above 25th Street where the tall industrial buildings on either side of the High Line create a shaded area with sumac trees. In Messrs. Corner and Scofidio’s vision, the path will convert to a metal walkway raised 8 feet above the railroad viaduct, from which visitors can look down on a moss- and fern-covered floor.

The project’s designers and city officials said the park is being created to serve walkers — bicyclists, runners, and Rollerbladers should go to the Hudson River Park, which is one block west, they said.

The High Line “is a place for strolling and sitting,” Mr. Corner said. “The whole idea of the design is to slow people down.”

Mr. Benepe said the park, like all city parks, will be closed at night, but its hours have not been determined.

Robert Hammond, a co-founder of Friends of the High Line, which began in 1999 as an advocacy group for the rail line’s preservation, said section two will cost $85 million to build, and the entire project will cost $170 million.

City, state, and federal governments have agreed to give more than $120 million to the project, leaving Friends of the High Line to raise $50 million to pay for section two of the park’s construction. The group has already received $20 million in donations, Mr. Hammond said.

Construction began on section one in 2006, and it will open in December or January. It runs between Gansevoort and 20th streets. Section two is projected to open at the end of 2009.


The New York Sun

© 2025 The New York Sun Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The material on this site is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used.

The New York Sun

Sign in or  Create a free account

or
By continuing you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use