High Tracks (NYC)

One of the best solutions to healing dilapidated urban districts is creating green-space that bisects the rundown urban area. High Line Park, in NYC is a grand example of community revival through landscape architecture. This old elevated stretch of rail tracks that runs from Gansevoort Street up to 20th Street. The elevated railroad was in use for almost five decades. But since it was shut down in 1980, the site slowly grew into despair. When local neighborhood residents decided to take action in 1999 to preserve this space, little did they know what the next decade would bring. Fast forward to 2010, and the High Line represents urban renewal that has re-energized the economic, social, and aesthetic sectors of the surrounding community. A hotel was built on the edge of the park, property value around the preserved High Line park has significantly increased. But most importantly, what used to be an urban eye sore for inhabitants of New York City, is now a space that evokes civic pride and joy.