[NYguy]

Originally Posted by Duck From NY

If we do end up trying to attract more tourists by building this wheel, they should focus on adding some other attractions in the St.George area. Any where else on the island would be silly, as even a typical tourist would be hard to convince to spend three hours traversing around what essentially is a suburb of the other four boroughs.

I'm not saying this project will fail if built, these are just things to consider. I'm sure we can all agree that it would be quite sad if it was built and 3/4 of the modules were empty during peak hours.

The thing about that wheel is that it is a destination, not just a ride. It in of itself would be enough. We talk in terms of tourists making the trip, but some forget that it's a metro of some 20 million people to draw from as well. Beyond that though, tourists making the journey on the ferry and the trip to the wheel won't really have much time for a lot of other things to do in Staten Island anyway. It's a big city. So much to do, and so little time. Maybe some locals could make a day trip of it...



http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...LEFTTopStories

Staten Island Outlet Mall Is Proposed





By LAURA KUSISTO and ELIOT BROWN
August 21, 2012

New Yorkers and tourists endure traffic jams on crowded buses to travel to outlet malls for discounted jeans and handbags, but the city and a developer are betting they would prefer a 25-minute ferry ride to Staten Island. The Bloomberg administration is in advanced talks with Don Capoccia, of BFC Partners, to build a roughly half-a-million-square-foot outlet mall near the Staten Island Ferry Terminal, according to two people briefed on the proposal. The mall would be near another big idea for Staten Island: Officials are also in advanced talks with investor group Plaza Capital Group Management, which would build the tallest "observation wheel" in the world, lifting visitors roughly 600 feet, according to people familiar with the proposal.

The mall and the observation wheel would replace parking lots on either side of Richmond County Bank Ballpark, the stadium of the minor league Staten Island Yankees. "It would be a draw for Staten Islanders and a draw for tourists to come downtown more than they already do," said state Sen. Diane Savino, a Democrat who represents the area.

Officials are hoping to reach an agreement with developers on the observation wheel and mall sites simultaneously, according to multiple people familiar with the process. No deal on either proposal has been reached. "We're thrilled with the excitement these sites have generated as we continue discussions with multiple developers in the hope of unlocking significant economic development potential for Staten Island's North Shore," said Benjamin Branham, a spokesman for the city's Economic Development Corp.

The Center for an Urban Future, a nonprofit research organization, estimated in a 2007 report about Staten Island that more than two million tourists a year take the ferry, with few ever leaving to explore the island. Outlet malls, which sell discounted goods by popular brands, have boomed across the country in the past decade, even as traditional enclosed suburban malls have declined in popularity. The New York area has relatively few, though, in part because of the dominance of Woodbury Common Premium Outlets—a huge and popular complex about 50 miles north of Manhattan. New York shoppers take hourlong bus rides there or travel to outlet malls on Long Island and New Jersey.

The Staten Island project has the potential to be the first outlet mall in New York City. Another proposal for an outlet mall in the Bronx is also reportedly under consideration.