Bloomberg, Norton Attend High Line Ribbon Cutting

Actor and High Line board member Edward Norton and Mayor Michael Bloomberg were among many to attend the opening of the second section of the High Line last Tuesday, June 7. The new section adds 10 blocks to the original stretch, which opened in June of 2009, bringing the park all the way from Gansevoort to 30th Street.

Freight traffic began on the West side in 1847, but there were so many train accidents on 10th Avenue that it became known as Death Avenue, and the train tracks were elevated in 1934. In the ensuing 50 years, the more than 250 slaughterhouses in the Meat Packing district slowly disappeared and trucking made train trafficking all but obsolete. The last train crossed the tracks in 1980, and the area fell into disrepair.

But leave it to New York City to transform a run-down neighborhood riddled with drugs and crime to one of the most trendy addresses in Manhattan. The High Line traverses the Meat Packing district, now home to just a handful of businesses still in the meatpacking trade, surrounded by chic bars, high-end hotels and celebrity real estate.

Attracting more than two million visitors a year, the High Line has now added a plush grass lawn and colorful art installation to the fountains, lounge chairs and beautiful views of the original park. At the ribbon cutting ceremony, Tiffany & Co. announced that they would be pitching in the first $5 million for the completion of the third and final section of the park that goes around the Hudson Rail Yards between 30th and 34th Streets.

Source: The Real Deal, Yahoo News

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