See Plans For Queens' Version Of The High Line

FOREST HILLS, QUEENS — Plans for a Queens High Line were released Wednesday, showing a green oasis stretching along the unused tracks of the Long Island Railroad.

The designs for the QueensWay Park transform the decommissioned Rockaway Beach Branch of the line.

The first half-mile stretch will run through Forest Hills and Glendale and could open to the public by 2020, according to the plans. It will be dubbed "the Metropolitan Hub" and connect to Forest Park. It will include outdoor classrooms for over 2,000 local students.

“Today’s announcement is a tremendous step forward for the QueensWay, which would not have been possible without our partners in government and the community who enthusiastically provided ideas for safe routes for biking and walking, outdoor classroom space and enhancements to baseball fields," said Andy Stone, NYC Director of The Trust for Public Land which is behind the project.

"The completion of a compelling design for the first phase will bring us that much closer to making the QueensWay a reality for hundreds of thousands of people who live within a 10-minute walk.”

The High Line, a park on a similar stretch of disused railway on the west side of Manhattan, has been hugely popular since its first section opened in 2009.

Below are the renderings for the first phase.

The plans for the first phase were developed with input from locals, and more details are expected later this year.

Currently, The Trust for Public Land and Friends of the QueensWay have a combined $2 million from private funds and New York State grants.

Once the project is complete, the park will stretch for 3-and-a-half miles.

Images via QueensWay