There’s no replicating the beautiful Piet Oudolf-designed gardens and sophisticated ambiance of New York’s iconic elevated park, but municipalities throughout the world have been inspired by what such a scenic walkway can bring to the urban space. The short list of other cities that have completed their own elevated parks or are in the process of doing so includes Philadelphia, Chicago, Detroit, Miami, Kansas City, Columbus, Pittsburgh, and Manchester, England.
Let’s add Buffalo. The Riverline (rendering above), a project by the Western New York Land Conservancy, has been in the discussion and planning stages since early 2017. It intends to reimagine one of Buffalo’s many railway corridors: a mile-and-a half stretch of no-longer-in-use DL&W tracks near downtown and the Buffalo River. The fact that it involves obsolete elevated railway tracks is about all that Riverline has in common with High Line. This is largely an industrial area whose industry has declined. It is dominated by the Buffalo River, with some residential neighborhoods, a lot of overgrown friends where nature look over, and, looming in the near distance, the enormous silos that witnessed Buffalo’s heyday as a grain processing and transferal center.
Riverline will provide respite to those who walk it but it also helps conserve its own natural areas. Rather than overlooking adjacent highrises, it traverses back yards, waterside access points for paddling, former factories, funky old pubs, and fields of wildflowers. It will connect these areas by adding children’s playspaces, small plazas (above), viewing areas, gardens (below), lighting, and public art. Some areas will be dominated by nature; others will be more conducive to gathering. There will be soaring bridges and ground level parks. The design partners are W Architecture, Hood Design Studio, and Green Shield Ecology.
There is a lot to say about the Riverline, but I look at it as a tour of Buffalo’s history and a continuation of the embracing of the waterfront that we ignored until recent decades. I particularly love the end of it (shown above), a dramatic river overlook.
Is something like this coming to/in your town? How is it working?
Images courtesy of Western New York Land Conservancy.
Here in DC it’s a garden-like bridge over the Anacostia River – the long-neglected one. https://www.dezeen.com/2020/04/23/11th-street-bridge-park-oma-olin-washington-dc/
All the post industrial sites are pretty cool looking- at least they did to me when we drove through Buffalo a few years ago. But going above residential neighborhoods creeps me out. All those people up there as I’m bent arse over in the garden? Nah. At grade? Ok. I can always plant a buffer or fence
I think that (small part of it) is at grade and buffers are mentioned.
My home is my castle and I would not like to share it with overhead viewers. Otherwise, the drawings look wonderful.
That section is at grade and with buffers. Not all of this is overhead.
Richmond VA has a ‘Lowline’ running along the canal and under/to the sides of an elevated rail track. Nice place to walk or rides bike as it eventually hooks up to the Capital Trail which runs from Richmond to Williamsburg.
A garden bridge was proposed in London and 53 million pounds spent on it before, after major controversy, it was abandoned! https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-47228698
So glad to know that riverline will provide respite to those who walk it but it also helps conserve its own natural areas.