High Line
NileGuide Expert Says:
The area near the Chelsea Market (between 15th and 16th Streets) hosts a yearlong public display of "The River That Flows Both Ways," by Spencer Finch. In this major exhibition, some 700 pieces of glass in shades based on the colors of the Hudson River reflect the intimate connection between the original High Line and the river, both conduits of transportation in a fast-moving city.
Address:
Gansevoort Street to 20th Street
New York City, NY 10011
NileGuide Expert tip:
The High Line is open every day from 7 am to 10 pm. Access points from street level are located at Gansevoort St, 14th St and 20th St (stairs only) and 16th St (stairs and elevator access). Currently, no dogs are allowed.
Description:
When it was built in the 1930s, as part of a massive public improvement program, the High Line elevated train traffic some 30 feet, safely above the streets of Manhattan's West Side. With the growth of interstate trucking, freight traffic decreased; the last train ran on the High Line in 1980. It was threatened with demolition through the late 1990s, when an organization called Friends of the High Line began advocating for its preservation and its conversion into a public space. After a design competition, construction began in 2008, including the installation of pathways, access points, seating, lighting, and planting. In June of 2009, the first section of the High Line (stretching from Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District to 20th Street, between 10th and 11th Avenues) opened to the public amid great excitement. Concessions ranging from coffee and bottled water to mozzarella panini and peach-berry lemonade are available along the High Line walkway, as well as landscaped green spaces and chairs for lounging.
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