NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--New York Wheel LLC was joined by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and city leaders at today’s announcement of the plans for the New York Wheel, a new attraction that promises to enhance the beauty, history, and significance of New York Harbor.
The New York Wheel, which will be built on the northeastern side of Staten Island, will offer city residents and tourists unrivaled views of the Lower and Midtown Manhattan skylines, the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn, and the New York Harbor. At 625 feet, or 60 stories, it will be the world’s tallest observation wheel. In terms of size, scope, and spectacular sights, the completed attraction promises to rival the London Eye, the Eiffel Tower, and the Sydney Harbor Opera House.
“The New York Wheel is destined to become one of the City’s – and the world’s – great landmark attractions,” said Richard A. Marin, President and CEO of the New York Wheel LLC. “There are very few opportunities in life to get involved with a project of this magnitude. We believe that the Wheel will quickly become an iconic fixture and we are proud and excited to bring it to Staten Island, New York City, and the Tri-State area.”
The New York Wheel project was proposed in response to the New York City Economic Development Corp’s request for bids for projects that would increase economic growth, boost tourism, and create jobs on Staten Island. The Staten Island waterfront is the ideal location for the New York Wheel, as the free Staten Island Ferry already attracts over two million tourists each year.
“This historic project promises to have an enormous positive impact on Staten Island and New York City overall – creating jobs, increasing tourism, and encouraging small business growth,” said Staten Island Borough President James P. Molinaro. “The construction and subsequent operation of the Wheel will create hundreds of jobs, and will also help to bolster the greater Staten Island economy, with Wheel visitors supporting local restaurants and shops. Every effort is being made to work with local Staten Island businesses to make this project a success.”
The New York Wheel will feature a large Terminal building that will feature exhibitions about New York City history, alternative energy, and environmental sustainability; the site also includes significant open green space. Construction plans for the Wheel and the Terminal building will strive for Platinum LEED certification, the highest rating of sustainable building today.
The New York Wheel will collaborate with Cornell’s Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise at Johnson and the global relief and development agency CARE to make the exhibit a high tech, state-of-the-art expo about worldwide sustainability. “Visitors to the New York Wheel will see green building and design, next-generation green materials, low- and no-carbon energy technologies, and the green collar economy at work. We will highlight the growing influence that entrepreneurship, innovation and technology commercialization is having on solving some of our most pressing problems,” said Mark Milstein, Director of the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise.
The New York Wheel is an important part of the City’s greater urban waterfront renewal effort, which includes the reopening of Governor’s Island, the High Line, and Brooklyn Bridge Park. Once completed, the New York Wheel also will introduce millions of tourists and New York City residents to a thriving Staten Island cultural and social scene that includes: Historic Richmond Town, the Postcards 9/11 Memorial, the National Lighthouse Museum, the Staten Island Zoo and Children’s Museum, and the Snug Harbor Cultural Center.
Among the architects, engineers, designers, and consultants of the New York Wheel are: Starneth, B.V., an engineering company specializing in giant observation wheels and structures and builders of the London Eye; and Perkins Eastman, a leading international architecture, urban design, and interior design firm. Broadwall Consulting Services acts as the New York Wheel’s Construction Consultant. Construction on the New York Wheel is expected to begin in early 2014 with a grand opening scheduled for early 2016.
About the New York Wheel
The New York Wheel, located on the northeastern side of Staten Island, will be the tallest observation wheel in the world and the only attraction of its kind in New York City. The 625-foot (roughly 60-story) Wheel will feature thirty-six capsules, each carrying up to 40 passengers, that will offer incomparable views of Lower and Midtown Manhattan, the Statue of Liberty, New York Harbor, and beyond both the Verrazano and the George Washington Bridges, for the duration of each 38-minute revolution. The attraction will accommodate as many as 1,440 people per trip, and will welcome as many as 30,000 visitors each day and an anticipated 4.5 million visitors per year.
The New York Wheel project was originally proposed in response to the New York City Economic Development Corp’s request for bids for projects that would increase economic growth, boost tourism, and create jobs on Staten Island. The New York Wheel is expected to begin construction in early 2014 with a grand opening scheduled for around New Year’s Eve 2015. For more information about the New York Wheel, please visit: www.NewYorkWheel.com.
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