2. High Line Visitors
Most people who visit the High Line are tourists. It
is a highly recommended attraction on review sites
such as Yelp and Qype.
Some New Yorkers have an aversion to visiting the
High Line because it has become such a popular
tourist attraction. Many of those who have visited
complain about the crowdedness of the park and in
their reviews recommend visiting hours on
weekdays during business hours.

3. A refreshing change from the
“So if you are a tourist like
hustle and bustle of the city. Lots An urban oasis. me, definitely make time
of great views. Beautiful plants.
for the High Line. This was
Cool apartment complexes. There's
one of the first things I did
a view of the Chelsea Pier that is
James C. Uniondale, NY on my trip when I got to
beautiful. What a great asset this is
NYC and I'm so glad I did.”
to the city. Seth J.
Rise D. Ewa Beach, HI Denver, C
O
Not only the design and the atmosphere
This park is very well of the park unique and innovative, it has
kept, clean, and free transformed a neighborhood which was
of weirdos and formally known as the "Death Avenue"
Jane R.
panhandlers (at least into a trendy, upscale, and more Little
when I was there). importantly, family friendly area. Rock, AR
Saya V. Los Angeles, CA
If you ever visit NY, this place is a MUST SEE! Very serene and beautiful. A
stark contrast of what NY is perceived to be and everything that you
would expect from NY. A one of a kind park.
Holly G. San Francisco, CA
Meet the Tourists

4. Meet the New Yorkers
The High Line is not a park in the traditional
concept, certainly not to relax. It's a piece of
modern art, a cool urban construction, a show
stage for fashionistas to have more fun, while
adding exotic glamour to mix materialism and
nature…
That's why High Line is SO crowded with
Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, NY
European tourists.
Deanne R. Manhattan, NY
All the tourist books are
touting this as the "new
thing to see in NYC." And it
really is. But go on a
weekday.
Wendy G. New York, NY Irm M. Manhattan, NY

5. The
Critics
Decide…

6. A Resident’s
Response to
Tourism
"Attention High Line
Tourists
West Chelsea is not Times
Square. It is not a tourist
attraction.
... If you love New
York, leave it alone.”

7. “Disney World on the Hudson”
A New York Times Op-Ed by Jeremiah Moss
Moss describes his initial excitement for the
opening of the High Line, but he was severely
disappointed with its lack of peacefulness due to
crowded walkways and guards who “admonished
me when my foot moved too close to a weed.” He
did not feel that the park was welcoming and
extends this perspective to the business owners
who were ousted by luxury residence buildings.

8. The High Line: New York’s
Monument to Gentrification
Essay by Michael Bourne
“Everywhere you look you see lovingly restored cracked
plaster and million-dollar gardens made to look like
neglected weed beds.”
“The High Line is the distressed skinny jeans of public
parks, the gourmet taco truck of urban tourist
attractions, and as such, it represents the high-water
mark of the hipster aesthetic, which venerates poverty
and decay as signifiers of authenticity.”

9. How is the High Line Detrimental?
• The new venues and
visitors displaced the long
standing businesses that
were there
• Property values rose
significantly as business
decreased because of
new companies opening
up shop for visitors and
luxury apartment
residents
• There’s no more room for
blue-collar workers

10. How is the High Line Beneficial?
• Since it’s opening, crime rates have
substantially decreased in the neighborhoods
that the High Line goes through.
• Although the old
businesses there
struggled, the
new “hipster”
venues flourish

11. Overall...
• The High Line as a park has received positive
feedback from tourists and New Yorkers
alike, despite the crowdedness
• The making of the park has been a successful
undertaking in salvaging the remains of an old
railway, though it’s own popularity seems to
hurt its intention to create a peaceful haven
above the bustling city life

12. Websites
• http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/11996
• http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/22/opinion/in-the-
shadows-of-the-high-line.html?_r=2&hp&
• http://www.themillions.com/2012/06/the-high-line-
new-yorks-monument-to-gentrification.html
• http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-high-line-new-york
• http://vanishingnewyork.blogspot.com/2012/05/attent
ion-high-line-tourists.html
• http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2011/aug/25/e
yes-above-street-high-lines-second-installment/