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Corzine Spoils Manhattan View for New Jersey With Ferris Wheel
The proposed Pepsi Globe, a 287-foot Ferris wheel, is shown at the Xanadu sports and entertainment complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in this undated artist's rendering. Residents of Bergen County, New Jersey, who view the Manhattan skyline from their homes soon may be looking at the giant Ferris wheel instead.
By Terrence Dopp
March 6 (Bloomberg)
Don't expect residents of Bergen County, New Jersey, to be first in line for a ride on the Ferris wheel going up in their backyards, the tallest in the U.S.
Neighbors complain that the project will obstruct their view of Manhattan's skyline across the Hudson River, hurting property values. Lane Biviano, Rutherford borough's attorney, is mustering public opposition to the Ferris wheel on a Web site listing beefs about its safety and aesthetics.
The ride will tower 287 feet (87 meters), eclipsing Dallas's 212-foot Texas Star. It's part of the $2 billion Xanadu sports and entertainment complex being built next to the Meadowlands racetrack, a project Governor Jon Corzine backs as a way to stimulate the state's economy.
"We don't want our town to be associated with some honky- tonk Ferris wheel,'' said East Rutherford Mayor James Cassella, whose community includes the Xanadu site. "There's a concern about our image.''
Construction of the Ferris wheel is scheduled to start in midsummer, said Xanadu spokesman Rich Edmonds. It will be ready to open with the rest of Xanadu in November, said Lloyd Kaplan, a spokesman for Meadowlands Development.
"I'm sure there were people who didn't like the Eiffel Tower being built because they felt it would impede their view,'' Kaplan said. ``You can't please everybody. We believe this will be of enormous beauty.''
The ride will be called the Pepsi Globe under a 10-year naming-rights agreement with Purchase, New York-based PepsiCo Inc. The wheel's 26 glass-enclosed, climate-controlled capsules will hold as many as 20 people each for 25-minute rides affording views of New York City and the Hudson. Ticket prices haven't been set, Edmonds said.
New Landmark
Ferris wheels are named after George Ferris, an engineer who designed the first one for the 1893 world's fair in Chicago. New Jersey's ride will become as recognizable as the St. Louis Gateway Arch, the Seattle Space Needle or the London Eye, another Ferris wheel, PepsiCo said in a statement announcing its sponsorship.
The wheel's high profile is just one concern of East Rutherford's Cassella. It will sit within 100 feet of the New Jersey Turnpike, one of the busiest highways in the U.S., and Cassella said it may distract drivers.
"People will take their eyes off the road,'' Cassella said. ``Your natural instinct will be to look at it. There will be a safety issue.''
Pollution, Police, Noise
Rutherford Mayor John Hipp said he hasn't heard one person in his community of 18,000 voice support for the ride. Hipp said he will lose the view of Manhattan from his front porch and Xanadu will increase pollution, use too much electricity and strain local services such as police.
Residents also say the Ferris wheel will generate too much noise, endanger planes using nearby Teterboro Airport and create an eyesore with its huge Pepsi logo, according to Biviano's Web site.
"Doesn't taste count for anything?'' Biviano said. His
www.savetheskyline.com trumpets the Star-Ledger newspaper's report that state Senate President Richard Codey called Xanadu "yucky-looking.''
Lilo Stainton, a spokeswoman for Corzine, referred calls about the Ferris wheel to Dennis Robinson, head of the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority. He said Xanadu is providing hundreds of construction jobs and will create 12,500 permanent positions and millions of dollars in tax revenue.
"There is more economic development activity taking place at the sports complex than anywhere else in the state,'' Robinson said. He cited $1.3 billion being spent on a new stadium for the New York Giants and $185 million to link the Meadowlands to the state's mass transit system.
Skiing, Bowling
Plans also call for a 780-foot indoor ski slope with man- made snow, a martini bar with bowling alleys, a skydiving simulation, shops, restaurants and an 18-screen movie theater.
The company hasn't submitted a design to obtain a construction permit for the Ferris wheel, said Chris Donnelly, spokesman for the state Department of Community Affairs, which regulates amusement rides. Meadowlands Development partners include Colony Capital LLC, a Los Angeles-based real-estate company led by billionaire Thomas Barrack; KanAm, a German real- estate firm; and New York-based Dune Capital Management LP's real estate fund.
Corzine's administration participated in several meetings when Colony Capital Acquisitions LLC was negotiating to purchase Mills Corp.'s Xanadu stake in November 2006, after Mills ran out of money for the project, said Jim Gardner, a spokesman for the governor.
The Ferris wheel will play a central role in Xanadu's success, generating interest and luring families, Robinson said.
Biviano is sticking with his view: The wheel is "structural graffiti.''
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