Community groups opposed fence on the City’s oldest bridge. On April 5, 2011, Landmarks approved the City’s proposal to build an eight-foot fence and undertake other alterations to the High Bridge footpath spanning the Harlem River between Washington Heights in Manhattan and the Highbridge section of the Bronx. The High Bridge was built in 1848 as part of the Old Croton Aqueduct to bring fresh water into Manhattan. It is the City’s oldest bridge.

The City in 1917 ceased using the bridge as an aqueduct. In 1927, the City replaced five of the bridge’s original fifteen masonry arches with a central steel span to allow large ships to pass underneath. The bridge gained notoriety in the late 1950s after children threw rocks at a passing Circle Line tour boat. After the High Bridge was closed to the public in 1970, Landmarks designated the  bridge as an individual City landmark. The City in 2009 announced plans to restore and reopen the High Bridge to pedestrian and bicycle traffic. (read more…)