La Línea Alta
Mexico´s New Jardín Flotante Tlallipan
Jardín Flotante Tlallipan, Mexico City´s new elevated linear park. Thanks to my friend the wordsmith Bob Rollins for the name. From now on, I am going to call this park, ¨La Línea Alta.¨
A walker in the city, reliant on an integrated transit systems (movilidad integrada) and a good bike share program, I find that some of my favorite infill urban redevelopment projects marry transit with parks and open space improvements.
El Jardín Flotante Tlallipan at Metro San Antonio Abad.
While Mexico City has a wealth of exceptional parks and greenways, it also has hundreds of neighborhoods starved for open space. Painfully aware of this reality, IMHO the city is doing what it can to green the environment by creating pocket parks and playgrounds and plant mini forests along many streets and highways. As of today, one of my new favorites, is an elevated linear park created atop a Metro line along an important trunk road. The new Jardín, a pedestrian-only 1.8 km long park, is an important addition to CDMX.
In early June, México City joined the growing list of cities that see the power and appeal of elevated linear parks like New York´s High Line and other rails to trails projects. But in a departure from the High Line and Chicago´s 606 (Bloomingdale Trail) models which transformed unused rail lines into elevated parks, Mexico City´s Jardín Flotante Tlallipan is integrated into three working Metro stations along a busy train line. The workhorse Metro Línea 2 carries thousands of Chilangos from the south of the city into and out of CDMX´s Centro Histórico, the seat of government for Los Estados Unidos de México.
Riding Línea 9 from Metro Patriotismo, near my home, to Metro Chabacano, I started my visit at the southern-most station along the elevated park. From there I walked along the planted path taking in the flowers and young trees and myriad statues of domestic pets and endangered amphibians.
A small green market along the park, carries reasonably priced produce.
I like the way the city is activating the park with a green market, a movie theatre, ping pong tables, stationary bikes, and a shaded play area for toddlers.
A play area for toddlers.
When I visited today, dozens of workers were busy tending to the pretty flower gardens that have been planted along the sides of the path.
Flowers abound at El Jardín Flotante Tlallipan.
In other areas, efforts have been made to feature low water plants like cactus and educate the public about the importance of conserving water.
A cactus in bloom along the elevated linear park.
Signage along the way emphasizes the need for city residents to conserve water.
I found the colorful statues of dogs and other animals along the way kitch, but judging from the knots of Chilangos snapping selfies, I am clearly in the minority.
This frog (and the dog statues) are selfie magnets for many visitors to the park.
While to the chagrin of critics of the ruling Morena Party who note that the park project came in over budget, in a world that spends what it does on weapons, I find this project worthwhile especially in an area of the city lacking in open space.
A pretty mural on a building facing the park, and new protected bike infrastructure along Calzada de Tlalpan, make me happy.
The park which starts at Metro Chabacano, makes its way north and literally through Metro San Antonio Abad, and on to Metro Pino Suárez in the Centro Histórico.
I have visited other elevated linear park projects in Paris (known as the Coulée verte René-Dumont or Promenade Plantée), and Chicago which has a great project called the Bloomingdale Trail (The 606).
La Coulée verte René-Dumont (La Promenade Plantée) in the 12e arrondissement, Paris.
Public amenities like these parks are creative solutions to the challenge of repurposing (and sometimes creating) new public space.
Unlike the Jardín Flotante Tlallipan, High Line and Promenade Plantée, The 606 in Chicago is bikeable. The 606 has sparked significant infill redevelopment along the route of the park.
El Jardín Flotante Tlallipan has already sparked the construction of infill housing and more is sure to follow.
New housing along ¨La Línea Alta.¨
A beautiful arch helps hold up the Promenade Plantée in Paris.
The trend of creating linear parks from Mexico City to San Francisco, California´s Sunset Dunes along the Great Highway, demonstrates the importance of creative thinking in park design and a willingness to repurpose old, outdated models of urban development.
Sunset Dunes, San Francisco, California´s new oceanfront park repurposed and improved upon part of the Great Highway.
Though it is also not elevated, I am a fan of the transformational Belt Line park cum economic development project that sews together parts of congested Atlanta lucky enough to be located along the former freight rail lines.
Atlanta´s Beltline owes its existence to the masters thesis of Ryan Gravel, a Georgia Tech graduate student.
Walking along the Jardín Flotante Tlallipan, I was also reminded of an afternoon I spent biking along the wall that encircles Xi´an, China.
Well protected on the top of the wall in Xi´an, China.
The air quality in Xi´an was so bad that the damage I did to my lungs undoubtedly outweighed any benefit I achieved biking that afternoon.
Biking in the coal-polluted smog in Xi´an.
As in so many other ways, from Cablebús and Metrobús to the growing network of ciclovías, Mexico City is indeed la capital de la transformacíon.
The neighboring skyline visible from El Jardín Flotante Tlallipan.
Yours in transit,
Joel
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