Read the passage and answer the questions.
Most city parks are places where you can escape from big, ugly structures of metal and stone. The Manhattan High Line is different. Raised 25 feet above the ground, this massive metal structure once supported a rail line. The line opened in 1934 to bring trains directly into factories and warehouses. It was hardly used after the 1960s, and much of it was torn down. However, one stretch remained in a region of Manhattan called Chelsea. Chelsea was becoming more and more upmarket as restaurants, art galleries, and apartments were built, but the ugly railway structure remained as a dead weight. Everyone knew that at some time, it would have to be removed.
But the High Line was not destroyed. In fact, now the old rail line serves as one of the most peaceful places in the city. It holds an elevated park, with carefully tended gardens, a promenade, and great views of the city. The idea to convert the rail line into a park came from Joshua David and Robert Hammond. In 1999, they attended a community meeting to decide the fate of the High Line. David and Hammond were the only people at the meeting interested in saving the historical structure. Later on, when they asked railway officials to take them up to look at the High Line, they saw a mile and a half of wildflowers growing in the middle of the city, and they realized that the High Line had the potential to become a park. There was growing interest in improving urban centers, and so the project quickly gathered momentum and funds for construction were easily obtained.
The first section of the High Line opened in 2009 and immediately became popular with tourists and locals alike. Each part of the park has a different atmosphere. Some areas are like balconies with wonderful city views. Where the rail line goes between buildings, trees are densely planted. Other sections have wide lawns and walkways planted with wildflowers. Only the final section remains the way it has been for the last fifty years - a railway line overgrown with weeds.
The phrase "dead weight" in the first paragraph means _____.
According to the passage, why did David and Hammond originally want to save the High Line?
Why were people easily persuaded by David and Hammond’s idea?
The last paragraph emphasizes that the park is _____.