Last week, the Spur, the final section of the High Line, opened to the public celebrating the 10th anniversary of the park’s opening.
With the High Line’s newest section, the Spur, set to open in April, final work is being done on this offshoot before it officially opens. The plaza offers remarkable views of the city in all four directions and will feature the Plinth, a space for showing monumental works of art.
The High Line is an urban park that might have never been built and is now estimated to be responsible for $2B in impact. The Atlanta BeltLine, Buffalo Bayou in Houston, The 606 in Chicago, The Underline in Miami, Philadelphia’s Rail Park, and the 11th Street Bridge Park in Washington, D.C. are among the emerging projects looking to unlock the potential of reimagined infrastructure and the benefits it can bring to their cities.
New Monuments for New Cities is a public art exhibition in which artists were asked to imagine new monuments. Their designs will travel to five cities next year, to be displayed in industrial reuse spaces, beginning in Buffalo Bayou in Houston in February, and ending on the High Line in New York in October.
Ian Garrick Mason’s short film highlights the importance of making space for parks in unlikely places, from under the Gardiner Expressway in Toronto to an elevated railway on Manhattan’s west side.
Robert Hammond, co-founder of Friends of the High Line, discusses how the organization is ensuring the High Line remains a public space for all New Yorkers.
From Chicago to Sydney to Seoul, cities are planning their own versions of the High Line. Each city has its own take on the concept and is adapting New York’s model to varying degrees of success.
One of the most successful infrastructure reuse projects in history, the High Line is a compelling shrine to the postindustrial life of a great city.
If you’re planning to visit New York City, or you live in one of its boroughs and wonder when’s the best time to visit the High Line—Andi Pettis, Director of Horticulture at Friends of the High Line, has an answer.
