Rail Yards

 

We need your help at City Hall on Monday, November 23, as the City Council's Zoning Subcommittee holds a final public hearing on the rezoning of the Western Rail Yards.

City Council Hearing on Western Rail Yards
Monday, November 23, 9:30 AM
City Hall, 260 Broadway, Council Chamber
(Please note the location change)
Subway: A, C, E, to Chambers; 1,2, to Park Place; 6, N, R to Bklyn Bridge/City Hall

RSVP

 

We just received word of an exciting development at the West Side Rail Yards. The Department of City Planning has announced that the City will initiate the process to allow it to acquire the High Line above 30th Street.

The City's decision to pursue the authority to the High Line is a major step towards achieving our ultimate goals: full preservation of the historic structure north of 30th Street, including the 10th Avenue Spur, and completion of the High Line project all the way to 34th Street.

Read the full Press Release [PDF]

 

We need your support tomorrow at the Community Board 4 public forum on the Western Rail Yards. Even as we open the first section of the High Line as a public park today, one-third of the structure still has an uncertain future, and may be partially demolished. Come help us show the City, developer and the MTA that the preservation of the entire historic High Line must be made a priority at the Rail Yards.

 

Tuesday's City Council hearing on the Eastern Rail Yards text amendments was a great success for Friends of the High Line.

Thanks to everyone who turned up this morning in support of  the High Line at the City Council hearing on the Eastern Rail Yards rezoning. The committee room and another, larger overflow room were both filled to capacity with High Line supporters wearing  "Save the High Line" T-shirts. (To everyone who came, you sure do look sexy in red!) Thanks also to those who took their time to testify to the Committee-- so many passionate and well-spoken New Yorkers certainly made a big impression.

Please note the new date: this hearing is now scheduled for Tuesday, March 31.

This City Council hearing is an important step in the public review process for the rail yards and, therefore, for the future of the High Line. It  will be a critical opportunity to show the City, State and developer how much public support there is for preserving the High Line at these sites.

The Council has been an ardent supporter of the High Line from the very beginning of our advocacy efforts. By coming to this hearing, you'll galvanize that support and send a clear message to all decision makers in the development process.

City Council Hearing on Eastern Rail Yards Rezoning
NEW DATE AND TIME: Tuesday, March 31
9:30 AM - 12:30 PM
City Hall, Council Committee Room
RSVP

Subway: A, C, E, to Chambers; 1,2, to Park Place; 6, N, R to Bklyn Bridge/City Hall

As if we needed another reason to save the High Line at the Rail Yards.

 
Don't miss your chance to show your support for the High Line at the most important public hearing since 2005.
UPDATE: This hearing is scheduled for March 31 at 9:30 AM. Read More.


In the next few weeks, the City Council will hold a public hearing regarding its vote on the Eastern Rail Yards zoning text amendments. The hearing, the City Council's first ever on the rail yards, will be a rare opportunity to show the Council how much public support there is for preserving the High Line at the rail yards. It is essential that we make a strong showing at this hearing.

If you want to recieve more information about this hearing, and to get regular updates about our rail yards advocacy, please email railyards@thehighline.org.

What we're asking for: We want the City of New York to take ownership of the High Line at the rail yards. This ownership transfer would happen in the same way it did on the rest of the High Line in 2005, with CSX Transportation, the private railroad company, donating the structure to the City for use as a public open space. City ownership would go a long way towards guaranteeing the High Line's permanent preservation, including the spur.

Why Now? The public review process for the rail yards development is underway. Despite the economic downturn, the developers are moving forward with the public approvals so that when the economy improves they will be ready to begin building. So now, during this public review process, is the time for the City to act on the High Line. City acquisition of the High Line must take place now, before development on the rail yards is given the green light.

 
This morning, the City Planning Commission heard public testimony on proposed amendments to the zoning of the Eastern Rail Yards.

The support for the full preservation of the High Line at the rail yards continues to grow-- Community Board 4 and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer have both added their voices to the call to save the spur.

At a recent full Board meeting, Community Board 4 made a clear statement advocating preservation of the entire High Line at the Eastern Rail Yards, including the spur over 10th Avenue.

In a letter addressed to the City Planning Commission, CB4 recommended approval of City Planning's proposed text amendments to the zoning plan for the Eastern Rail Yards—but at the same time, they requested additional text amendments to ensure that the entire High Line would be protected.

CB4's letter points out that though Related shows the entire High Line in its drawing for the site, "the brutal truth of the situation is that the High Line on the ERY and the WRY remains unprotected and at serious risk of demolition. Now is the time to put in place the zoning protections to ensure that the High Line will be preserved."

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer's zoning amendment recommendation to City Planning include an equally strong call to save the spur. In his letter to City Planning Chair Amanda Burden, he wrote, "Redeveloping the rail yards must not threaten any portion of the High Line, including the spur; it should be preserved in its entirety."