Historic Preservation - Urban

Landscape Design

An ambitious blend of landscape architecture, urban

design and historic preservation, the now-famous New
York City High Line Park is now open to the public. This
remarkable adaptive reuse project appropriated a
controversial landmark (or eyesore, depending on who
you ask) in the heart of the city: a 1.5-mile-long stretch of
elevated railway.
To those of us with architecture, landscape and/or urban
design backgrounds the idea of demolishing a structure
that snakes above and through the center of one of the
most amazing cities on the planet is a unthinkable.
Nonetheless, most people did not initially see the
incredible potential of this lofted thoroughfare, so aged
and so long unused.
Once a vocal enough set of supporters through their
weight behind this preservation project, however,
designers from around the world competed for the
privilege of reenvisioning a space that would become
central to its bustling urban environment. The winning
architects (Diller + Scoffidio) submitted a design that
respected the integrity of what was left of the structure,
including wild-growing plants, ambiguous paths and the
existing rail lines.
The delicate reconstruction of the High Line involved
extensive structural testing along its entire length,
removing and marking rails for future replacement and
the integration of hundreds of plants and soil types to
create a huge biodiversity park that changes in material
and plant color and texture with each twist and turn.

At its opening, the High Line still remains far from

complete – some areas are yet to be fully developed and
many plants have yet to grow to their full size. Moreover,
many developments are planned around the elevated
park structure – encouraged by the renovation to come
and compete for the business the new construction will
attract.