The All-New High Line

With travel restrictions requiring quarantines for many out-of-state visitors to New York City, the normal hordes of tourists on New York's High Line will be absent for months to come.

1 minute read

July 3, 2020, 5:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Standard Hotel

Nathan Laurel / Flickr

Washington Post columnist Adrian Higgins checks in the with the High Line in New York City, which has been vacated during the pandemic much like it was before its famous adaptive reuse and evolution into a tourism magnet and a controversial symbol of gentrification.  

Now, with the city taking tentative steps to reopen and travel restrictions into New York in place, the High Line is likely to evolve again. Higgins writes:

In the interval between limited reopening and a world back to normal, whenever that may be, the High Line will become something closer to its original idea, a quirky postindustrial gift to the West Side. It may become for New Yorkers what the cultural treasures of Florence and Venice are now for their citizens: havens devoid of the hordes of out-of-towners.

According to Higgins, the Friends of the High Line is actively discussing how to implement and enforce social distancing on the eight-foot wide path, but no decisions have been made yet. It also "may take years for New York to return to the level of tourism — some 65 million visitors a year — it attained before the coronavirus crisis," according to Higgins.

Wednesday, June 24, 2020 in The Washington Post

Sweeping view of Portland, Oregon with Mt. Hood in background against sunset sky.

Oregon Passes Exemption to Urban Growth Boundary

Cities have a one-time chance to acquire new land for development in a bid to increase housing supply and affordability.

March 12, 2024 - Housing Wire

Aerial view of green roofs with plants in Sydney, Australia.

Where Urban Design Is Headed in 2024

A forecast of likely trends in urban design and architecture.

March 10, 2024 - Daily Journal of Commerce

Cobblestone street with streetcar line, row of vintage streetlights on left, and colorful restaurant and shop awnings on right on River Street in Savannah, Georgia.

Savannah: A City of Planning Contrasts

From a human-scales, plaza-anchored grid to suburban sprawl, the oldest planned city in the United States has seen wildly different development patterns.

March 12, 2024 - Strong Towns

Aerial View of Chuckanut Drive and the Blanchard Bridge in the Skagit Valley.

Washington Tribes Receive Resilience Funding

The 28 grants support projects including relocation efforts as coastal communities face the growing impacts of climate change.

March 18 - The Seattle Times

Historic buildings in downtown Los Angeles with large "Pan American Lofts" sign on side of building.

Adaptive Reuse Bills Introduced in California Assembly

The legislation would expand eligibility for economic incentives and let cities loosen regulations to allow for more building conversions.

March 18 - Beverly Press

View from above of swan-shaped paddleboats with lights on around artesian fountain in Echo Park Lake with downtown Los Angeles skylien in background at twilight.

LA's Top Parks, Ranked

TimeOut just released its list of the top 26 parks in the L.A. area, which is home to some of the best green spaces around.

March 18 - TimeOut

News from HUD User

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Call for Speakers

Mpact Transit + Community

New Updates on PD&R Edge

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.