Image via Complex Original
You may be loosely acquainted with what is arguably the city's sleekest park, but architect Babak Bryan is here to help you get on a first-name basis. Look up, and get familiarized with the High Line.
THE VITALS:
What: The High Line
Where: Far west side of Manhattan, from Gansevoort St. to 34th St., mostly west of 10th Ave.
Neighborhoods spanned: Meatpacking District, West Chelsea, and Hell's Kitchen
Year built: 1934
Converted to a park in: 2009 (Phase 1: 2009; Phase 2: 2011; Phase 3: ongoing)
Hours: 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.
Park architects: Diller Scofidio + Renfro (past projects include Lincoln Center redevelopment, Brasserie Restaurant, and ICA Boston)
Park's landscape architect: James Corner (past projects include Fresh Kills Park)
# of species of plants found: 210, 161 native to New York (a better ratio than the city’s residents)
Total length of original track laid: 5.7 miles
Current length of park: 1.45 miles (or 91,872 inches)
In operation as at freight line: 1934-1980
Last freight shipment: 3 carloads of frozen turkeys
10. Those awesome lounge chairs on the sundeck? They don't move, so stop trying.
Just north of 14th Street, the Sundeck is where you are most likely to see bikini-clad waifs basking in the sun. The location takes advantage of the parks twists to better orient towards the afternoon light coming from the south-west. Some of the lounge chairs are mounted with clever brackets to sit on the refurbished tracks, but they have been clamped into place (most likely to keep you from creeping on the cutie lying on the adjacent bench) so unfortunately, they cannot be moved. There is also a small water feature, for one cannot sunbath without water. The original vision was for a substantially deeper moat-like channel of water. Still, we'll take what we can get.
9. The park's best feature hasn't even been built yet.
At 18th street, one part of the High Line has still yet to be constructed. A vast plaza on street level will open up via a cascading grand staircase to connect with the park above. Unlike all the current access points to the park, which make a point at marking the transition from street to elevated landscape, this section will blur the two territories together. Above this plaza, will also be situated a large cantilever "bar" that would serve snacks and drinks while providing sweeping views down to the city and the park. It is envisioned that this will become an iconic hub for the neighborhood, though it's hard to imagine it being even more successful than it currently is.
8. There are hidden works of art strewn throughout the park.
Every year the park commissions several sculptures to be scattered around the park. Last year's gem was the series of birdhouses built in an obtuse perspective by Sarah Sze. Along the western wall, south of 24th street, is a mural by the Gyanese artist El Anatsui. But more difficult to be found among the array of elevated cars and trucks is the piece above: "Untitled," by Virginia Overton. The Brooklyn based artist plays off the multiple vantage points of the High Line (with respect to the adjacent stacked parking machines) to produce an inventive exhibit in an unlikely space.
7. Ray Bradbury loosely inspired the "Woodland Flyover" section of the park.
Unlike the more curated southern portion of the High Line that was constructed in the first phase, the second phase's construction has elements that yield a more rugged, natural aesthetic. Between 25th and 26th Streets, where the path elevates above the grade of the tracks, the vegetation is more densely planted to take advantage of the microclimate created by the narrow corridor between the buildings. This elevated path allows for the plants to grow below the path, recreating the image described by Bradbury in A Sound of Thunder. Don't fall off the path!
6. There's a "wild" area of the park called the Northern Spur.
While the landscaping effort for the entire park was intended to provide the look and feel of what the High Line looked like once the trains stopped traveling, the designers also had to balance safety, access, and provide room for thousands of visitors at any given moment. The result, although still elegant in its own right, is a highly manicured park.
In contrast, the inaccessible section along the Northern Spur, just north of the Nabisco Factory, provides a better glimpse of that lost past. What they may not want you to know, however, is that just like Olmstead's Central and Prospect Parks, every tree, plant and aspect of even the "wildest" areas of the park were specifically planted and are all man-made. But, don't let that knowledge ruin the bucolic views of the thousands of native grasses below while standing on the grated cantilever.
5. The park has a "theater" (but not really).
Facing North, looking up 10th Avenue, the architects deliberately lowered the decking of the High Line to create theater-like seating with views of the city. Take a break from your stroll to enjoy the traffic of the city emerge from beneath your feet. While the exhilarating feeling of having the traffic rushing towards you might have been a more exciting experience, there is something remarkably peaceful about watching NYC traffic from this orientation. Maybe it's just knowing that you're not in the streets amid the hustle and bustle that makes this vantage point all the more relaxing.
4. The High Line passes over what was once the Nabisco Factory (and is currently the Chelsea Market).
Between 15th and 16th streets, the High Line passes into the western end of what was once the Nabisco Factory (now Chelsea Market). And while there is no direct access into the market building from the High Line itself, there are several high end vendors that would be happy to sell their treats for your delight. While enjoying a gelato or a popsicle, take a look at the random colored stain glass windows. This art piece by Spencer Finch, titled "The River that Flows Both Ways," pays respect to the other north-south transportation corridor, the Hudson River. Spencer made a 700 minute photo-document of how the water's flow and color changes during a single day. The same single pixel from each minute of film is then selected to color each of the panes of glass in the tunnel, to stunning visual effect.
3. The second phase of the park will mean more roaming, and less "keep off" signs.
When Phase 1 was completed, the reviews were overwhelmingly positive. The High Line was a huge success and was immediately embraced by the city as part of its identity. It seemed that the park was perfect. Except for one apparent flaw: It claimed to be a park, but there was not one single place where the visitor could physically interact with the vegetation. Although the plants are rugged enough to withstand the difficulties of growing "wild" in the city, they apparently are too fragile to be touched by all the visitors. The proliferation of "keep off" signs was in contrast to the notion of pastoral landscape. Thus, for phase 2, the design was slightly altered to incorporate a lawn that could actually be occupied. Still, with no dogs and no playing, this park doesn't seem like a real park, but rather what should be expected in the sterilized reincarnation of New York as envisioned by Hizzoner.
2. The best views? They might just be found at the Standard Hotel.
If nothing else has managed to put your date in the mood, then as a last resort, take a minute to stop before the Standard Hotel (848 Washington St.) and look up at the bedroom windows. Although you are less likely to catch a glimpse of a beautiful naked model now that the hotel has ended their viral campaign of hiring models to "pose" in the windows, you may still be lucky to catch a real hotel guest who may have "forgotten" to close their blinds as they get undressed. The best hours (or so we've heard) are early in the mornings around 9-10 and the early evening around 7p.m.
1. As with life, the park comes to an abrupt end.
At the southern end of the High Line, the tracks come to an abrupt end. Unlike the northern terminus, which when complete will blend into the street level grading, the southern end marks the cut where the original tracks were demolished in the 1960's. Although the rail line was still in use, most of its traffic had migrated to trucks since the southern extension that originally terminated in St John's Park Terminal was no longer needed.