Reuse - Case Study - High Line Park , New York

I've decided to focus on Reuse. I visited Topos's website and found High Line Park in New York. I was interested in this project because I enjoy discovering projects that make use of deralict spaces. The project transforms an old train track constructed in the 1930s to lift dangerous freight trains off Manhattan's streets. The winners of the competion to transform the deralict train route were landscape architects James Corner Field Operations, with architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Here are some original pictures when the track was in use. 

A plan of the train route...

 

Access points along the route...

 

About the Park .Section 1 of the High Line is open as a public park, owned by the City of New York and operated under the jurisdiction of the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.When all sections are complete, the High Line will be a mile-and-a-half-long elevated park, running through the West Side neighborhoods of the Meatpacking District, West Chelsea and Clinton/Hell's Kitchen. It features an integrated landscape combining meandering concrete pathways with naturalistic plantings. Fixed and movable seating, lighting, and special features are also included in the park. Friends of the High Line is the conservancy charged with raising private funds for the park and overseeing its maintenance and operations, pursuant to an agreement with the Parks Department. 

Historic photos of the track in use during the 1930s...

 High Line Park

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 privledge 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 biodiverse 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.

To view the design slide show visit:
http://www.thehighline.org/design/designslideshow.htm

My Thoughts: This type of landscape architecture is my most faverable. The process of re-inventing a important historic site is exciting . I enjoy seeing how a space has changed over time through photographs. Below are photos of the different construction phases and you can see how the space is being transformed whilst its history is repected. Below are some photos of the site being prepared. From a landscape architect's point of view, this is where it all comes into reality and its fasinating to see this site develop.

This photo shows the trucks being crained in to clear 25 years of overgrowth from the site.
Site preperation began in 2006.

The original train tracks are dismantled and the concrete floor demolished.

 

Workmen mark peices of track for later re-assembly.

  

These are various fixings removed from the train track. By looking at these photos you are stepping back in time. Its fasinating. Below is an arial view showing a cleared section of the rail bed.Workmen spray water over the rail bed to reduce any dust.

 

Next was lifting and removing the concrete base.

You can see here the structural supports that the concrete slaps rest on.

I assume the workmen put temporary flooring between the structural supports so that they could move across the space once the concrete slabs were removed.

In certain areas they left the oringinal concrete base intact. This photograph shows it prepared for the waterproof layer, the next phase of construction.

The cleared rail bed is now prepared for the waterproof layer...

Installation of the waterproof layer...

Next comes the delivery of the hardscape material...

Craining in the hardscape and organising it...

 

Begining of construction...

Train track re-assembly...

How exciting!

Drainage membrane goes in...

The piping and cabling go in...

 The long pieces of stone you see are called planks. Below are some photos of the asssembly and layout of them.

Some stones are tapered at the ends. The stones are linier in design and resemble the paralell lines of the train tracks.

 

The speckled effect on the stone turned out to be water dropplets, nothing to do with the colouring of the stone (which would have been neat)! The next few photos are of the raised peel-up benches.

Wooden benches will attach too these to form raised seating. They are also movable...

 

 The next series of photographes are of the sundeck loungers being constructed. Anouther quality feature. *see the design slide show for the visualisations.

 

Now the lighting...

 

 

And finally the stair construction...

 

Pieces of the structure are cut to make room for the stairway then carried away by truck...

 

  

And thats the end of the hardscape construction!

Planting Construction
The High Line's plantings are inspired by the self-seeded landscape that grew on the out-of-use elevated rail tracks during the 25 years after the trains stopped running. The 210 species of perennials, grasses, shrubs and trees on Section 1 were chosen for their hardiness, sustainability, and textural and color variation, with a focus on native species. Many of the species that originally grew on the High Line's rail bed are incorporated into the park landscape. The landscape also emphasizes a diversity in bloom time, with Section 1 plants blooming from late January to mid-November. 

Pictures of the top soil arriving and being crained in...

 

Spreading out and evening of the soil are done by large buckets and diggers...

 

.A quick look back in time...

Anouther important operation is to cover up and protect sections that could become covered in dirt if not having the forthought to protect it. Was that the workermens job to specify or the landscape archtects?

Plants arrive...

 

The organising begins!

The planting design reflects the species that were present in that picticular section at pre-preperation stage.

 

Raised planters with trees are lifted in...

Arranging continues...

Colour coded distribution smooths the operation.

Fences are subtly added to prevent small children climbing underneath the oringinal railings. 

 

Public Programes - Covering Reuse

Native Seed Harvest back in 2006(before construction, reducing project expences)...

Public Programes - Educational

Green Roof Class 2006...

 There are more public programes being held at High Line Park to find out more visit:
http://www.thehighline.org/events/public-programs

My thoughts and intentions for the future...
I thoroughly enjoyed finding out about this project. So much so that I would like to pay a visit to it one day. I thought about getting involved with the Friends of High Line Park organisation perhaps voluteering, signing up to the newsletter and subscribing to the blog or becoming a member and making a donation or all.

See visiters enjoy High Line Park (also see related videos)