[NYguy]

I think it will do just fine, and surprise a lot of doubters.


http://www.silive.com/opinion/editor...ould_turn.html

The New York Wheel would turn Staten Island into a world-class destination

July 20, 2012

If we build it, they will come. The 600-foot-tall New York Wheel, with magnificent views from on high, could turn Staten Island into a world-class tourist destination, which is why many Staten Islanders support the concept. The revolving observation platform being proposed for the waterfront near the Staten Island Ferry is to be a towering spectacle like nothing else in America. It goes above and beyond ordinary Ferris wheels. It would be no mere carnival ride, as some mistakenly envision it.

Featuring glass-enclosed capsules that can hold up to 35 people, the giant New York Wheel is intended to be a harborside showcase - not an amusement park attraction.

What’s being proposed by private developers would be a “fabulous magnet” for people to come to Staten Island, according to Mitchell Moss, a professor of urban policy and planning at New York University’s Graduate School of Public Service. He said: “It’s going to be one of the city’s great tourist attractions because it will combine the ferry ride with an activity, and since the ferry to Staten Island is much more accessible than the ferry to the Statue of Liberty, it’s going to supersede the Statue of Liberty as a magnet for visitors.” Known worldwide as one of New York’s top 10 attractions, the Staten Island Ferry carries about 2 million tourists every year. They plan ahead for the scenic round-trip voyage back and forth across the harbor, but rarely leave the St. George Ferry Terminal itself to see anything anywhere on the Island.

This guaranteed year-round stream of visitors is why investors found it was economically viable to propose to the city Economic Development Corp. to build an observation wheel like the 443-foot London Eye or the 541-foot Singapore Flyer. Mayor Michael Bloomberg has endorsed the concept. So has Borough President James Molinaro, who has said agreement in principle could come this month to build the Wheel on city-owned land near the Richmond County Bank Ballpark. He says it could be up and running by early 2015.

The sooner the better, we say.