600-Foot-Long Elevated Path Adds New Woodland and Timber Bridges, Knits Together New Public Spaces and Public Transit Surrounding Moynihan Train Hall
Latest Addition to the High Line Opens to Public Tomorrow, June 22
Photos Available Here; Time-Lapse Video of Bridge Construction Here
Governor Hochul: "New York is absolutely rising, and we are rising up to the heavens with this project...This showcases the natural beauty, the plantings, how magnificent are they, the streetscapes, the chance to see from a different vantage point how magnificent this city is."
Hochul: "The chance to be able to go over these bridges, these connections, and I'm going to make sure that we continue every opportunity we have to showcase all that is great and unique and fascinating about New York City."
Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul announced the opening of the new High Line - Moynihan Connector, a stunning new elevated pathway for pedestrians in the heart of Manhattan, with The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Brookfield Properties and Friends of the High Line. The Connector knits together new public spaces and public transit surrounding Moynihan Train Hall with the High Line, allowing pedestrians an uninterrupted, accessible and safe path all the way from West Midtown to the West Village. It officially opens to the public tomorrow, June 22.
VIDEO of the event is available on YouTube here and in TV quality (h.264, mp4) format here.
AUDIO of the event is available here.
PHOTOS of the event are available on the Governor's Flickr page.
A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:
I'm so proud to be here to be able to get this over the finish line and to thank the leaders of the true believers. The people who thought that this could happen despite all the obstacles, years of work, a pandemic, a recession, and people said, "No, we can do this." To me, that is reflective of the indomitable spirit of New York at its finest.
So, I want to thank people like - Dick Gottfried is here. Where's Dick? Dick, raise your hand. Where is Dick? Dick, stand up. Our Assemblymember for many years, 50 years I believe, and he made sure that this happened. Our Senator, Brad Hoylman, I want to thank Brad for his support as well. Erik Bottcher, thank you for helping us get over the finish line. Also support from the Port Authority. Rick Cotton. Stand Up, Rick Cotton. Thank you for saying, "Yes," every time I ask, and I know I ask a lot. Okay. That's - we'll talk about that later. Mario Palumbo, the Chair of the Friends of the High Line. Thank you, Mario. And of course, Alan van Capelle, thank you. I know there's other electives. I don't know if anybody else has arrived, but if you do, welcome.
I've been waiting for this. Many of you don't know this, but I wander to the city incognito all the time. So, that is me in a baseball cap depending on whether it's football season or baseball season, you may see a team or you may not, I'm not going to disclose anything here. But I put on a pair of jeans, sneakers, a baseball cap, and I wander, and so often my heart brings me to this place. To the High Line where I can showcase to my friends and family, others from out of town, how incredible New York is at a time when people are questioning the liabilities of our urban areas. And you see article after article saying, "Our city is on decline." Today, we answer with the resounding, "Not here in New York, we are rising."
New York is absolutely rising, and we are rising up to the heavens with this project. 20 feet in the air. Now people say, "New Yorkers look down on people," but yes, we do. From this vantage point, we are looking down on the rest of the world. Okay? In a good way we look down on people. So, this showcases the natural beauty, the plantings, how magnificent are they, the streetscapes, the chance to see from a different vantage point how magnificent this city is. And it's also a testament to our resilience. We always build during the toughest times. Think back to the Great Depression. That's when our skyscrapers and our bridges were going up. We didn't go into a hole and lament the circumstance. We rose up after 9/11. My God. We have the opportunity now to build thousands of units of housing down there, bringing back a community that was all once a commercial district, a financial district, and now we're saying, "Let's let people live there." It's extraordinary.
And to have this connection, and I thank our partners again, Brookfield, thank you so much for stepping up with the resources. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, $20 million. State, $20 million. The Friends of the High Lines, $10 million. And guess what? My favorite words: We're actually under budget. Okay. How often does that happen? It is that partnership of true believers who said, "We have to make this happen." And Erik, I agree with you.
We're not done yet. As long as I'm Governor, we're going to continue everywhere we can to create public spaces. People can stroll here. Senior citizens with their walkers have a place to get some fresh air. Moms and dads pushing strollers with babies. This is where we want people to come, and I think there's going to be a lot of proposals right in front of this interesting tree. What a backdrop. I can see people coming here getting down on their knees and saying, "Will you spend the rest of your life with me?" Because this place is romantic. Romantics are attracted here, and this is a statement of what New York is all about. It's a city you can't help but love. So, am I enthusiastic? I sure am.
I could not be prouder to see what we've accomplished here today. The chance to be able to go over these bridges, these connections, and I'm going to make sure that we continue every opportunity we have to showcase all that is great and unique and fascinating about New York City. And to the rest of the world, come on and visit, and if you want to, come on and live here, we'll make everybody a New Yorker in time because if you understand what we're all about, that sense of possibility, we are undaunted, we are resilient. And again, it's that indomitable spirit that'll always characterize New Yorkers, whether it's our people, our places, or how we approach all of our challenges in lives.
So, it is a fantastic day here in the State of New York. Could not be happier to be here. Look forward to walking across the bridge. I'm sure it's really stable. We're going to be good, right? Everybody? Engineers have checked it out. I need a lot of nodding heads on that. We're good. Okay. Okay. So, I look forward to the inaugural walk. Let's make that happen. Again, thank you to everyone who never stopped believing. Thank you very much, everyone. Have a great day.
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