Archinect - News

Miami begins construction on the Underline, a 10-mile urban path under the city's Metrorail

2018-11-16T15:03:00-05:00

Since opening, the High Line has become the proverbial example of how cities can transform their underutilized nooks and crannies into vibrant public spaces. Now attracting more than six million visitors a year, the railway-turned-park has inspired a host of similar projects all across the world from Seoul to London.

Whereas the High Line focused on the reuse of a historic rail line, a new project in Miami, which broke ground earlier this month, is applying the same concept to the space underneath. Designed by James Corner Field Operations, Miami's forthcoming Underline will create a 10-mile linear park beneath the city's Metrorail.

The project was first inspired when Meg Daly, who came to found the non-profit Friends of the Underline, got into a bicycling accident. Unable to drive, Daly started taking the Miami Metrorail and using the space u...

Locals welcome The 606, a.k.a. Chicago's "High Line", but anxiety for its future remains

2015-06-10T10:15:00-04:00

Chicago's highly anticipated elevated trail and park system known as The 606, otherwise referred to as the Bloomingdale Trail or the "Chicago High Line", finally celebrated its grand opening this past Saturday on the appropriate date of June 6 (6/06). The centerpiece of the $95 million project — which had its first phase designed by ARUP, Carol Ross Barney, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Burns & McDonnell, and the Chicago Public Art Group — is a 2.7 mile elevated trail that replaces the defunct Bloomingdale rail line. The trail will connect the Wicker Park, Bucktown, Humboldt Park, and Logan Square neighborhoods and six parks. And unlike similar linear-park projects, The 606 is open to pedestrians and cyclists to use as a new "transit corridor".

Prior to The 606, those communities were historically divided by the Bloomingdale railway and were in need of open green space. The newly opened trail is still looking fairly sparse at the moment, but later phases of the project include ...

The Underline holds Public Interest Meetings in Miami

2015-04-17T23:44:00-04:00

Our vision is to transform the underutilized land below Miami’s MetroRail, from the Miami River to Dadeland South Station, into an iconic linear park, world-class urban trail and living art destination.

The Underline is a proposal to activate the 10 mile space underneath Miami’s elevated metro rail into an urban trail. This initiative was a collaboration between the organizers of The Underline nonprofit, The University of Miami School of Architecture, and Miami Dade County. Recently, James Corner Field Operations won a proposal to develop a master plan for the area. This is a continued involvement by the firm, as they already are developing strategies for the Lincoln Road area of Miami Beach, and developed Knight Plaza between the art and science museums in Downtown Miami.

Over the course of this weekend, organizers and volunteers of The Underline are putting together public meetings to gauge ideas from the locals of what they want for the future linear park. Holding interactive presentations, members of the community were asked to vote on preselected ideas by Field Operations, write in their own ideas, draw out ideas on maps showcasing the scope of the project, and open poste...