Sydney breaks ground on its version of the High Line elevated park [slideshow]

Sydney is the latest city to begin construction on an elevated park; theirs will be built on a 500-meter stretch of abandoned railway. The park, called the Goods Line, will include bike paths, study pods, and outdoor workspaces for local students.

The two-stage construction process begins with the 250-meter Goods Line North, where the Powerhouse Museum will be connected to Frank Gehry's Chau Chak Wing Building (an addition to the University of Technology). The opening of the latter building is set to coincide with the opening of the Goods Line North.

After the completion of this phase, projected for November 2014, the second stage will reshape an extant pedestrian walkway.

The construction contract has been awarded to Gartner Rose. The Goods Line was designed by ASPECT Studios and Choi Ropiha Fighera.

More about the project from the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority:
• Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority is leading this whole-of-government project which will open up a pedestrian and cycle network from Railway Square through Ultimo to Darling Harbour.
• The Goods Line will create a new urban hub and connect more than 80,000 tertiary students, locals and visitors to the many major attractions of Sydney’s much-loved Darling Harbour.
• The corridor will feature a series of elevated spaces or platforms which can be used for a variety of public entertainment, recreation, study and other activities.
• It will further connect arts, education and cultural institutions along Sydney’s Cultural Ribbon.
• The design captures and interprets the original heritage corridor, state significant rail underbridge and signal box.
• It will be a great new public space for pop-up events, invigorating and bringing new activity into the precinct.
• The Goods Line North is the upcoming stage of a larger project. The next stage will be to redesign The Goods Line South, which runs from Ultimo Road underbridge through to Railway Square. In total, the northern and southern sections will be approximately 500 metres long.
• Transport for NSW is conducting a feasibility study on a further extension of The Goods Line through to Mortuary Station and Redfern.

The Goods Line North is meant to bring new activity into the area, as imagined below.

This rendering is the concept of the Goods Line South, which will be constructed after the northern section.

Check out the video released by the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, which is leading the project.

In a move that brings full-service planning expertise to its already well-established architecture practice, Lord, Aeck & Sargent (LAS) has merged with Urban Collage (UC), one of the largest urban and campus planning and design firms in the Southeast. Combining these firms’ talents was made official today. UC plans to retain its name for the foreseeable future.