Friends of the High Line presented a plan to the Community Board 4 Waterfront Parks and Environment committee last Thursday night to revamp the north-most section of the linear park.
High foot traffic has worn down the pavement on the northern section of the High Line that extends northwest of 11th Avenue. Friends of the High Line, the nonprofit tasked with park maintenance, is planning to repave this section of the linear park, and while it’s at it, install more lighting and replace some of the wood material on the section’s benches.
Though the deteriorating footpath prompted the project, the community board’s reaction centered more on the new lighting. Several members of the board voiced their surprise and dismay that the park planners had not considered solar energy for the new lighting fixtures.
“It is extremely disappointing to me that you’re not continuing to set yourself up as an environmental exemplar,” said the committee’s co-chair Maarten de Kadt.
The High Line design representatives said they had looked into some solar lighting but had ultimately decided that they would not be dependable as a light source at night and would therefore not be feasible for safety reasons. The section of the High Line up for consideration closes for the winter season, but the spokespeople said the new lighting will allow the park stewards to keep it open year-round with the same hours as the rest of the park.
Members of the board took issue with this response and insisted that the planning and construction team do more research into both wind and solar energy solutions, even if as a pilot program for a portion of the park that is slated for renovation.
The project is slated to start construction in the spring of this year. The goal is to get it ready by the end of this year 2023.
The board voted to write a letter broadly in favor of the renovations, with the caveat that the nonprofit must look more closely at alternative energy sources.
