The High
Line Railway in New York City was a true diamond in the rough. Its redevelopment galvanized a larger
movement in cities to reclaim underutilized infrastructure and reimagine them
as public space. This ‘High Line Network’
includes projects throughout the US. Unfortunately,
Salesforce Park is not on the list.
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| Ned Kahn's dormant water feature |
At its core,
the Salesforce Park is a reimagining of the top of an old transit center. Designers saw an opportunity to transform a
turnstile for buses into a lush green oasis in the heart of SF. With lofty ambitions comes high expectations. Examining how people interact with the space will
ultimately tell the story of the park.
Nothing is
more important to using a park, then getting to it. Salesforce Park has two main elevators at
either end, two main escalators, and a gondola.
No stairs. Stairs level the
playing field for everyone. People can pause
on stairs, meet on stairs, go at their own pace. The High Line has wide stairways that accommodate
the thousands of people that visit it every year. At Salesforce Park, machines throttle the
flow of people. One rarely hears “let’s
get in the elevator” and “let’s go to the park” in the same sentence. Machines are great for security and keeping
out the homeless but bad for access.
In the name
of art, a 1,000 ft water sculpture lines one edge of Salesforce Park. The designers built a 5’ deep bed for drought
tolerant plants alongside the fountain.
They shield the plants from view [and excess water] with 5’ tall
plexiglass panels. Moms encourage their
kids to stay out of the fountain zone so they don’t get wet. That’s 10,000 square feet of space where
space is at a premium.
There is
more to the park than the fountain. Lots
of no mow, low water grass with signs to stay off. Lots of domes – a la the California Academy
of Sciences – where people are off limits. The planting is similar to museum exhibits; groupings
of plants with master signs and big railings to keep viewers back.
Salesforce Park
feels like a museum that opened a long time ago. Like a place that has the Hope Diamond on
display, with security cameras, people queuing up to get in, and VIP receptions. Except New York has the real crown jewel of
raised parks.
Access is hot topic for green spaces and redevelopment in general. Ideally, all walks of life are encouraged to use parks and enjoy nature equally. To that end, The Friends of The High Line operates the NYC park. The name just sounds happy and fluffy, like a wagging Newfoundland. Sure, Friends of The High Line has received its share of criticism about park programming. That’s New York and that’s healthy. Biederman Redevelopment Ventures operates Salesforce Park. They transformed New York's Bryant Park into a safe vibrant place. They’re organizing a whole host of free activities in the park. Let’s see how they do.
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