The High Bridge may not be New York’s most famous bridge, but it is its oldest. This 19th-century landmark, flanked on both sides by Highbridge Park, sat unused for more than four decades until it was reopened to the public this summer.
Extending for 400 metres over the Harlem River, and connecting Manhattan’s Washington Heights neighbourhood on one side and Highbridge in The Bronx on the other, the bridge was part of the Croton Aqueduct system, the Big Apple’s first water supply system. Built in the mid 1800s, the aqueduct carried water from the Croton River in Westchester to Manhattan’s 19th-century residents, replacing the wells, springs and ponds that had been used until that time.
The bridge officially opened in 1848, and its walkway was completed in 1864, quickly becoming a popular attraction for promenading New Yorkers and tourists alike, as well as a preferred subject for artists and photographers of the time. Its popularity spurred the construction of hotels, restaurants and amusement parks in the vicinity.
"Every resident of the city knows where High Bridge is, no matter how dense his ignorance may be as to the other points of the water service," wrote Scribner's Weekly in 1877.
The historical importance of The High Bridge cannot be underestimated – an abundance of clean water helped to drive a population boom in the city, laying the foundations for its evolution into the megalopolis that it is today. Its historical significance is now being highlighted through events such as the upcoming Historic New York: Old Croton Aqueduct programme on September 20, where, over the course of a two-hour hike across the bridge, Urban Park Rangers will outline the importance of this long-forgotten landmark in facilitating the success and growth of the city, particularly in the 1880s, when the water it provided proved instrumental in combating a cholera outbreak.
By the end of the 1960s, however, the bridge had become little more than a relic. Public use and appreciation waned with the construction of the Major Deegan Expressway in 1956 and the Harlem River Drive in 1964. The river became polluted, paths were blocked and visitors no longer flocked to the parks to enjoy their waterfront vistas. In the 1970s, public access to the bridge was discontinued.
The bridge was saved from disappearing into the annals of history by groups such as The High Bridge Coalition and Friends of the Old Croton Aqueduct, who campaigned to have it reopened. In 2013, 165 years since it first opened, the then mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg marked the initiation of a US$61 million (Dh224m) project, led by the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation, to restore the bridge to its former glory and improve the two parks on either end.
While a few final bits of construction work are still under way on the bridge, it’s currently open to pedestrians and cyclists. Designed by the chief aqueduct engineer John B Jervis, the original structure featured 15 imposing masonry arches. In the 1920s, proposals to pull down the bridge, which was deemed “a hazard to navigation”, were met with public protest. As a compromise, the 15 original arches were replaced by a single steel arch in 1928. It’s protected from any future removal efforts by its New York City landmark status, and it also shares the aqueduct’s National Historic Landmark designation.
On the Manhattan side of the structure sits the commanding High Bridge Tower, which was built in 1872. Highbridge Park on this end of the bridge was assembled, bit by bit, between 1867 and the 1960s, but much was acquired following building condemnations between 1895 and 1901. The park is home to the city’s first mountain-biking course and a skate park, while the Highbridge Recreation Center and Pool have kept local residents entertained since the 1930s, and a number of playgrounds and playing fields have sprouted up across the park over the past century. A unique geological make-up includes forest, cliffs and large rock outcrops.
The parks have also suffered their fair share of neglect over the years, but efforts are under way to retame this 119-acre wilderness. The New York Restoration Project – a non-profit organisation founded by Bette Midler in 1995, and dedicated to planting trees, renovating gardens, restoring parks and transforming open spaces for communities throughout New York City’s five boroughs – is currently responsible for maintaining the northern half of Highbridge Park. NYRP staff work full-time to manage and restore the park’s forests and clear tons of rubbish each year. The organisation is also working to replace invasive, non-native species such as Norway maple with oak and dogwood, and plant shrubs, ground cover and wildflowers.
Currently on show on the esplanade leading up to the bridge is a public exhibition entitled Oh Sit! 14 Sculptors Consider the Chair, a group endeavour featuring creations by the artists Dan Bergman, Allan Cyprys, Robert Dell, Gregoire Ferland, Esther Grillo, Christina Jorge, Siena Gillann Porta, Herb Rosenberg and Chuck von Schmidt. Each artist has been invited to respond imaginatively to the notion of sitting, and the exhibition, which runs until November 8, is "a way of asking the viewer to look and really consider the concept 'chair' both objectively and subjectively", according to the event organisers, which include NYC Parks, New York Foundation for the Arts and Rockaway Artist Alliance.
The long-awaited reopening of The High Bridge has brought obvious comparisons with New York’s High Line, a former freight rail line running above the streets of Manhattan’s West Side that was converted into a public park in the early 2000s. Extending from Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District to West 34th Street, this ingenious walkway provides visitors with a unique way to experience the city, and is the site of gardens, public art installations and a constant stream of pedestrians.
But for now at least, The High Bridge is a rather more sedate affair, a little piece of reclaimed history that’s a testament to people’s needs for green, public spaces in any city.
sdenman@thenational.ae
For more information on The High Bridge, visit www.nycgovparks.org.
Green Spaces is a series that features notable gardens and public spaces from around the world.
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'The Sky is Everywhere'
Director:Josephine Decker
Stars:Grace Kaufman, Pico Alexander, Jacques Colimon
Rating:2/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The specs
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Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
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Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz GLE
Price, base / as tested Dh274,000 (estimate)
Engine 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder
Gearbox Nine-speed automatic
Power 245hp @ 4,200rpm
Torque 500Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.4L / 100km
SHAITTAN
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Specs
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The specs
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THE SPECS
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The biog
Favourite book: Men are from Mars Women are from Venus
Favourite travel destination: Ooty, a hill station in South India
Hobbies: Cooking. Biryani, pepper crab are her signature dishes
Favourite place in UAE: Marjan Island
Info
What: 11th edition of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship
When: December 27-29, 2018
Confirmed: men: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Kevin Anderson, Dominic Thiem, Hyeon Chung, Karen Khachanov; women: Venus Williams
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae, Virgin megastores or call 800 86 823
