Advocates for the High Line, the West Side’s famed public park, are concerned about major rezoning changes that could negatively impact the neighborhood if a plan to build a casino goes through.
Friends of the High Line , a nonprofit that oversees many aspects of the popular park along with the NYC Parks Department, is asking the Department of City Planning to review proposed rezoning changes put forth by Related Companies, a mega developer that wants to build a full-service “Vegas-style” casino nearby.
The location of concern is an area where the High Line abuts the Western Rail Yard site, which is situated west of Hudson Yards. It is sometimes referred to as the Interim Walkway at the Western Rail Yards.
Related Companies is one of several developers seeking licenses from New York state to build a full-service casino in the metro area. There are only three licenses up for grabs, and the process to get one is not easy. Developers have been aggressively wooing New Yorkers over the previous year or so about the benefits of hosting a casino in the city.
Related’s plans to build near Hudson Yards became more real when the company released renderings of the casino project last month.
Stakes are high for the community
But many community members and advocates, including Friends of the High Line say there is too much at stake.
At the core of the group’s concerns is a change in how the neighborhood will look. As per a negotiated plan from 2009, this part of the High Line, known as the Western Rail Yard, was to remain mostly residential to maximize light, air and views from open spaces.
Rezoning, however, would allow for new skyscrapers and towers to rise — taking away accessible open space, or as Friends of the High Line put it, the neighborhood’s “character.”
In fact, the Western Rail Yard section of the High Line is often fondly to as the “Rail Yard Preserve,” explained Alan van Capelle, executive director of the Friends of the…
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