At this week’s annual meeting of the Rose F. Kennedy Greenway Conservancy, the group invited a guest speaker from the Friends of the High Line, an innovative public park in New York City. Patrick Cullina is a well-known and respected horticultural designer, photographer and lecturer whose specialty is public horticulture. He is Vice President of Horticulture and Park Operations for Friends of the High Line in New York City and has served as Vice President of Horticulture, Operations and Science Research at Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The video includes the presentation slideshow and audience discussion.
The High Line is a public park located on the west side of Manhattan on an old elevated rail line structure. It is a relatively new greenspace accessible via stairs leading up to the linear park. The first two sections are about a mile long having cost approximately $150 million. Economic benefits have been estimated to be more than twice the cost. A third section is currently being planned.
The High Line hosted 1.5 million visitors in its first six months. On some Saturdays, the stairs up and down see 500 people coming through every 15 minutes totaling 25,000 visitors, more than the Statue of Liberty.
