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NARR: The High Line was closed in 1980 after interstate trucking had taken the place of rail transport. In 1999, after reading in the New York Times that the weed-strewn and rusting railway might be demolished, Greenwich Village resident Robert Hammond went to a community board meeting looking to volunteer to help save the railway he saw as a neighborhood treasure. It was there where he met Joshua David who had the same idea. But they were the only ones.
[BEGIN SOUND: Construction at the High Line in the Meat Packing District]
ACT: HAMMOND TIME: 0:19
In the course of the meeting, we realized that no one really was in favor of saving it except us. Everyone at the meanging either really wanted it down. There were a whole bunch of property owners that had been working for years to tear it down. And then even most of the community members really weren't in favor of it. They sort of saw it as a blight.
NARR: Hammond and David decided to launch a group called "Friends of the High Line" to save and redevelop this relic. They managed to raise more than 130 million dollars from scores of private individuals, foundations and government. Hammond's great enthusiasm for this unique project is a big part of what made it possible for them to raise the money.
ACT: HAMMOND TIME: 0:29
I mean I say it's an escape from the City, but it's completely comnnected to the City. So, it's an escape in that you're two or three stories up off the ground, so it's just a little quieter. You know, you're away the traffic, but you see the City all around you. You know, there's probably a million miles of abandoned railroad tracks all over the world with wild flowers growing on it. But what makes this special is that you can see the Empire State Building, you can see the Hudson River.
NARR: Hammond pointed from atop a building on West 14th street at the intense construction work on the park.
ACT: HAMMOND TIME: 0:13
We're looking at the first section of the High Line. That's Gansevoort where the High Line begins. And this whole section where we come up to 14th Street. You can see the construction work going on right now.
NARR: While the natural plant growth had created something of a park already, the redevelopment includes plank walkways, the original rail as well as landscaping with constantly changing plant life.
ACT: HAMMOND TIME: 0:15
They've put in the new planking systems and you can see the actual rails have been put back. We tagged the rails exactly where they are and we're putting them back in. And the planting is going to go in all around the rails.
[END AMB SOUND OF CONSTRUCTION AT HIGH LINE]
NARR: Despite Hammond's and David's success raising money and support for the project, not everybody in the neighborhood was convinced it was a good idea. Ed Kirkland is a Chelsea resident and High Line neighbor since the 1960s. He remembers the sounds of the trains on those tracks. Kirkland's served on the community board for more than 20 years, with a focus on preservation and landmarks. Further up the High Line route, at 23rd Street and Tenth Avenue, Kirkland explained that he resisted the project from the beginning.
ACT: KIRKLAND TIME: 0:10
In the bottom of my heart, I knew that any attempt to save the High Line could only come with the gentrification of the area.
NARR: In a lot of ways, Kirkland's worst nightmare has come true. New luxury apartment buildings are popping up all around the High Line and rents are up. The Whitney Museum is opening a branch in the Meat Packing District. That said, Kirkland and others who were opposed to the redevelopment saw the writing on the wall.
ACT: KIRKLAND TIME: 0:13
We saw that the City was determined to this. Gentrification since it was coming to all the buldings nearby would come there somehow. So the general feeling was, well, let us guide it.
NARR: Kirkland says he's proud that the board was able to secure some guarantees of affordable housing in almost all the new buildings as well as special protections for many tenants in existing rent regulated units. But not everybody was opposed. Scott Morrison is a local resident and entrepreneur who's elated with the park project. He's the founder of the Earnest Sewn clothing company on Gansevoort Street. He thinks the High Line will bring in new business.
ACT: MORRISON TIME: 0:22
I think what's probably going to happen is that there is going to be a tremendous amount of foot traffic, a tremendous amount of interest, you know, tourist interest, which I think is great. I mean from a retailing standpoint, obviously if you're an owner of a store here, it's fantastic. It's going to have a great outcome, I think. I also think it's going to bring a lot more awareness to the city and also to this area. I'm super excited about it.
NARR: The first segment of the High Line Park is set to open this fall.
Ivan Dominguez, Columbia Radio News.