The High Line was never intended to be a view corridor.
It rose in the 1930's from a need to get freight trains off of 10th Ave: they were killing too many people. It snaked its way up out of the Hudson Yards and down through the industrial neighborhoods of Manhattan's far West Side to its original terminus at Washington Street and Houston. Some buildings took advantage of this freight artery with second or third story sidings and spurs, while others were mutilated or demolished to make way for its mid-block cut.
For most of its existence the High Line was an eyesore. It engaged buildings that needed access to its trains, with the rest turning their backs on it. Traveling along it one would view blank façades, cluttered shafts and alleys between buildings, roofscapes, loading docks, and long axial views down Chelsea's numbered streets before it passed into the more opaque street matrix of the West Village. It was noisy, smokey, and dirty: not something to celebrate with glass walled luxury residences.
Of course today, that's what one increasingly sees. It has become a real estate goldmine despite the initial clamor of short sighted developers to raze it. Millions of yearly visitors have now replaced millions of tons of freight. Walking along it, they are still able to catch unexpected vistas that were never intended for consumption. This unusual and unintended perspective on the city is what makes the High Line something to be savored. However, its success has not only turned the opinions of its one time detractors, but also the façades of the buildings popping up along it.
No longer shunned with architectural nether regions, the High Line is now the featured neighborhood attraction. Floor to ceiling windows of multi-million dollar condos gaze upon it. Boutique artisanal vendors politely hawk their goods along it. The very hip Standard Hotel—beloved of exhibitionists for its glass walls—lewdly straddles it and the Whitney Museum moved from the tawny Upper East Side to now anchor it in the Meatpacking District.
The increasingly curated spectacle of the High Line's entourage is definitely entertaining and worth a look. However, I recommend visiting sooner rather than later, while one can still gawk at unintended glimpses of the nether regions of the neighborhood's vanishing industrial past.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // West Chelsea
Backside of an old industrial building with rusted fire escape.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // West Chelsea
The only large scale residential construction to occur near the High Line while it was still an active railway was public housing.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // Hudson Yards
One of the few remaining empty lots adjacent to the High Line is now used to store old rail switches removed from it.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // West Chelsea
Ornate connector above W 15th Street. The former buildings of the Nabisco complex—where the Oreo Cookie was invented and originally produced—now house the boutique Chelsea Market (on left) and high tech businesses.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // Meatpacking District
A former packing plant has been replaced with boutique chain stores. The generous awnings originally had rails mounted beneath them, upon which sides of meat would be hung and rolled from trucks to processing inside.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // Hudson Yards
A view over Hudson Yards toward Javits Convention Center from a few years ago. Notice the original vegetation on the High Line prior to its removal for phase three of the park. This part of Hudson Yards is also now under development with 1,000+ ft. towers beginning to rise on it.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // Meatpacking District
A view between old chimney stacks of a meat packing plant on the left, and the new Standard Hotel on the right, toward Pier 54, which is where the RMS Titanic was supposed to dock after her maiden voyage.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // West Chelsea
Frank Gehry on the left, with Jean Nouvel on the right, bracketed by old brick walls. The old industrial shed in the middle ground is undergoing renovation, while a newly occupiable rooftop is seen in the foreground.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // West Chelsea
An interesting mix of old and new along 10th Avenue. New luxury lofts on the left, a warehouse conversion right of it, with three originally working class walk-ups on the right.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // West Chelsea
The transition from eyesore to featured presentation in full effect. The old buildings on the left present blank façades to the High Line, while new multi-million dollar condos with floor to ceiling windows are constructed on the right.
© Zachary Tyler Newton // New York City - High Line Park // Hudson Yards
The ultimate conversion site. Hudson Yards, where the High Line originated from, was originally an open rail yard. Now it is the site of a 12+ billion dollar development, where the yards will be covered by soaring 1000+ ft. skyscrapers—the first of which can be seen rising on the right.