Highbridge Park and Water Tower

Washington Heights

Manhattan

There are enough bike paths in NYC that it is almost possible to ride around the entire perimeter of Manhattan Island. And, if proposed bike paths get completed, aforementioned feat should soon be accomplishable. Don’t get too excited, though, as several projects that were slated to be completed Spring 2012 are still behind locked fences.

Thanks to incomplete bike routes, Highbridge Park isn’t as easy to get to as it could be, but once you get there you will find one of the three mountain bike paths in NYC, and the only one located in Manhattan (the other two are in Queens and Staten Island). Be forewarned, though, as this path far enough off the beaten that you will encounter at least one or two makeshift shanty homes. Think of it as local color.

Highbridge Park is named after High Bridge, the oldest standing bridge in NYC, and one of the city’s few pedestrian-only bridges. High Bridge opened in 1848 as part of the Croton Aqueduct.  The aqueduct was developed to bring fresh water to the rapidly growing city and prevent future cholera epidemics like the city had seen through much of the 1820s and 30s. Highbridge Park developed piecemeal between 1867 and 1960, with majority of it acquired between 1895 and 1901. The park lies in several chunks on both the Manhattan and the Bronx sides of the bridge.

Cars were never allowed on High Bridge, only pedestrian and bike traffic. When the construction of major expressways caused the popularity of the waterfront to fade, in 1923 the city proposed demolishing High Bridge, something which was vehemently opposed by the public. Repairs and alterations were later made on the bridge to make it possible for large ships to pass under it, but the Croton Aqueduct was removed from service in 1958 and not long after the bridge was closed to traffic of any kind. The story is the bridge was closed due to hooligans throwing things off it onto passing Circle Line boats in the Harlem River.

One of the stunning architectural features of Highbridge Park—aside from the bridge itself, which was originally made of fifteen imposing Roman stone arches—is the High Bridge Water Tower. The tower was designed by famed engineer John Jervis in 1872 and keeps with the Romanesque Revival architectural theme of the bridge. The tower was damaged in an arson fire in 1984 but was later repaired in 1990. Visitors used to be able to go up the winding interior staircase on ranger led tours to see magnificent views of the surrounding city, and the tower was a popular destination during Open House New York. Unfortunately, tours were halted in 2010 due to concerns over the stability of the tower’s windows which have suffered considerable water damage over time.

There is good news for both the bridge and the tower, however, as both are slated for restoration. The bridge was supposed to reopen this summer, but now the proposed reopening date is summer of 2014. Restoration of the tower is a bit iffier—currently funds are being raised by the High Bridge Coalition, an organization that was founded in 2001 with the goal of restoring the bridge and its surrounding area. Even Bette Midler, who chairs the New York Restoration Project, has been working to restore the park.

For the meantime, bikers and visitors will have to be contented with exterior views of the tower and terrestrial views of the bridge. They do make a nice biking destination for those who are up for the journey. 

http://www.nycgovparks.org/park-features/highbridge-park/planyc