City gets the High Line for use as public space.

The City of New York acquired title to the High Line elevated rail viaduct from CSX Transportation, Inc. this month.

CSX donated the High Line to the City and the transfer of ownership clears the way for the structure's transformation into a public open space to begin in 2006. Open space on the High Line will run from Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District through West Chelsea to the Hudson Yards. In addition, the City and CSX signed a Trail Use Agreement, permitting the rail structure to be used by the public as a recreational amenity. The first section of the High Line is projected to open to the public in 2008.

"The transfer of ownership of the High Line from CSX to the City marks another important milestone in our efforts to create a one-of-a-kind public space for all New Yorkers," said Mayor Bloomberg. "This unique public amenity will become a symbol of all that is great in New York as we plan for our future by creating much needed parks and public spaces."

The transfer of ownership puts title to the High Line in control of the City of New York. The Trail Use Agreement concludes negotiations between the City and CSX Transportation, Inc., to allow the High Line to become a railbanked trail. Railbanking, a method of creating trails from out-of-use rail corridors, was established by a 1983 Congressional amendment to the National Trails Systems Act. The City originally petitioned the federal Surface Transportation Board for authorization to create a railbanked trail on the High Line in December 2002. In June 2005, the STB authorized a Certificate of Interim Trail Use. The CITU enabled the completion of negotiations for the Trail Use Agreement and transfer of ownership.

Construction on the High Line project is scheduled to begin in 2006. The work will be divided into two phases: site preparation and construction.