Mayor Bloomberg Announces City Acquires High Line From CSX Transportation

    NEW YORK, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg today
 announced that the City of New York acquired title to the High Line elevated
 rail viaduct from CSX Transportation, Inc. this month.  CSX donated the High
 Line to the City, and the transfer of ownership clears the way for the
 structure's transformation into a public open space to begin in 2006.  Open
 space on the High Line will run from Gansevoort Street in Manhattan's
 Meatpacking District through West Chelsea to the Hudson Yards.  In addition,
 the City and CSX signed a Trail Use Agreement, permitting the rail structure
 to be used by the public as a recreational amenity.  The first section of the
 High Line is projected to open to the public in 2008.
     "The transfer of ownership of the High Line from CSX to the City marks
 another important milestone in our efforts to create a one-of-a-kind public
 space for all New Yorkers," said Mayor Bloomberg.  "This unique public amenity
 will become a symbol of all that is great in New York as we plan for our
 future by creating much needed parks and public spaces.  This is another
 terrific example of the public and private sectors working together to make
 the City a healthier and more beautiful place, and of creative people pursuing
 visions that would seem impossible anywhere else in the world.  Members of my
 Administration who've worked so hard on this project, and our partners at
 Friends of the High Line and CSX, should be proud of the legacy we are
 creating for future generations of New Yorkers."
     "We are delighted that our donation of the High Line to the City of New
 York will result in a new public space for residents and tourists to enjoy,"
 said CSX Corporation Senior VP of Regulatory Affairs and Washington Counsel
 Peter Shudtz.  "CSX's donation of the property and the accompanying Trail Use
 Agreement with the City of New York would not have been possible without the
 dedication and coordination of many in the public, nonprofit, and private
 sectors.  We are especially appreciative of the partnership and commitment of
 the Bloomberg Administration to turn this property into a public amenity, and
 we commend the vision and persistence of Robert Hammond and Joshua David of
 Friends of the High Line who tirelessly advocated for the High Line's reuse.
 CSX is pleased to be a part of what promises to be an exceptional public space
 in New York City."
     "The High Line will be this century's Central Park," said City Council
 Speaker Gifford Miller.  "Establishing the framework for the High Line's
 transformation was among my top priorities as Speaker, and I'm extremely
 pleased to see the Council's leadership bear such wonderful results in such a
 short time.  The High Line is an inspiring New York success story, showing how
 diverse constituencies can work together to create something great for New
 York City's future."
     "Railbanking the High Line was our most important goal when we started
 Friends of the High Line in 1999, and now that huge advance has been
 accomplished, thanks to the successful completion of the Trail Use Agreement
 and transfer of ownership from CSX to the City," said FHL Co-founder Robert
 Hammond.  "We're especially grateful to Mayor Bloomberg and his Administration
 for their vision and unstinting work to move the project forward.  They took a
 structure that had been mired in legal disputes for nearly 20 years and turned
 it around, bringing it to the start of construction in just three short years.
 We also thank City Council Speaker Gifford Miller for championing the High
 Line's transformation and committing much-needed funds; Senators Charles
 Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton and Representative Jerrold Nadler for their
 successful efforts to bring major federal-funding to the project; and CSX for
 its openness to the High Line being preserved and reused to benefit all New
 Yorkers."
     The transfer of ownership puts title to the High Line in control of the
 City of New York.  The Trail Use Agreement concludes negotiations between the
 City and CSX Transportation, Inc., to allow the High Line to become a
 railbanked trail.  Railbanking, a method of creating trails from out-of-use
 rail corridors, was established by a 1983 Congressional amendment to the
 National Trails Systems Act.  There are over 13,000 miles of rail-trails
 across the country.  The City originally petitioned the federal Surface
 Transportation Board (STB) for authorization to create a railbanked trail on
 the High Line in December 2002.  In June 2005, the STB authorized a
 Certificate of Interim Trail Use (CITU) for the High Line.  The CITU enabled
 the completion of negotiations for the Trail Use Agreement and transfer of
 ownership.
     Construction on the High Line project is scheduled to begin in 2006.  The
 work will be divided into two scopes of work: site preparation, which includes
 removal of the rails and ballast, comprehensive waterproofing, and stripping
 and painting of all steel, and construction of the public landscape including
 access systems (stairs and elevators), pathways, plantings, seating, lighting,
 safety enhancements and other features.  The first section of the High Line is
 projected to open to the public in 2008.  The preliminary design for the first
 phase of the High Line's transformation can be viewed at
 http://www.thehighline.org/design.  The preliminary design will continue to
 evolve as the project moves toward construction.
     In the fall of 2004, the Mayor and Speaker Miller announced new capital
 funding commitments for the High Line bringing the total funding commitment to
 $61.75 million.  In January 2005, $3 million in federal Congestion Mitigation
 and Air Quality Improvement Program (CMAQ) funding was allocated by the New
 York Metropolitan Transportation Council's New York City Transportation
 Coordinating Committee.  In June 2005, the West Chelsea neighborhood
 surrounding the High Line was rezoned to support its reuse as a public space,
 to provide opportunities for new residential and commercial development, and
 to enhance the neighborhood's thriving art gallery district.  And in August
 2005, Senators Schumer and Clinton, and U.S. Representative Nadler announced
 that they had secured $18 million in capital funding in the multi-year federal
 transportation bill.  These elected officials also brought $1.5 million to the
 project in appropriations bills in 2004 and 2005.  Lastly, State
 Assemblymember Gottfried worked to bring $50,000 in State Multi-Modal
 Transportation Program funds to the High Line.
 
     Friends of the High Line (FHL), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, began
 advocating for the High Line's reuse as public open space in 1999.  In 2002,
 the Bloomberg Administration endorsed the project when it filed with the
 Surface Transportation Board (STB) requesting authorization to create a
 railbanked trail on the High Line.  The STB gave that authorization, in the
 form of a Certificate of Interim Trail Use (CITU) in June 2005.  It is
 important to note that the High Line is not yet open to the public, and
 trespassers are subject to prosecution.
 
 

SOURCE  Friends of the High Line