Visiting the High Line Park and Greening NYC

Take a walk on the innovative High Line, and learn how to make better urban spaces.

August 4, 2009 at 10:30AM by Brian Clark Howard | comment

If you've been following Pamela French's A Greener Apple NYC, you've been hearing about how everyday New Yorkers and visitors to the big city think the town can improve it's environmental footprint. You've also seen a bit of local culture, and enjoyed a street-eye view of various attractions, from the Times Square pedestrian zone to the St. Patrick's Day parade and even the beach.

This time, French walks the spectacular High Line vertical park (see photos of TDG's trip). Hilariously, another person suggests that "Miracle-Gro" is the way to get a greener apple (remember that guy on the Green Drinks cruise?). There's more calls to increase the number of recycling bins around town (seems like a no brainer!), and to accept more types of plastics, as well as a suggestion to try "that compost thing...like they do in Europe."

Speaking of Europeans, one visitor from the continent argued that going green will cost some people money, and that "there's no easy answer." A confused couple from Houston suggested turning the air conditioner on, because "if it wasn't on the humidity would make your house green." Another woman complained that all the green is where the rich people live (of course it's also true that NYC has more greenspace than any other sizable U.S. city).

How would you make New York a greener apple?