An artist's rendering of the mammoth Ferris wheel being proposed for the St. George waterfront.
Most notably, EDC rejected one exciting proposal after another for redeveloping the Stapleton Home Port after it was abandoned by the Navy in 1994. After waging a protracted vendetta to evict the widely supported and promising Stapleton Studios, the agency finally managed to attract the kind of ho-hum development it had always sought for the site - high-end housing, with a commercial component. That’s fine, but it pales in comparison to the hopes many Staten Islanders had for the tract.
The EDC also seemed content to allow the National Lighthouse Museum, which was supposed to be a feather in the Big Apple’s cultural cap, to languish and founder for years, to the point where it was almost lost.
In fairness, EDC recently reissued a request for proposals for one building on the old Coast Guard base site, and appears poised to allow the reconstituted museum board to acquire it for genuine programming.
That may have signaled a change in direction at the agency. For if the EDC could be accused of thinking small in the past, its latest idea for the St. George waterfront is as big as it gets.
As a result of a Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for two sites near the ferry issued by the EDC last August, the agency is reportedly very close to a deal with a company to build the largest Ferris wheel on the planet.
The 600-foot-plus attraction would be taller than the famous London Eye in Britain and the Singapore Flyer, currently the world’s tallest wheel.
Unlike traditional Ferris wheels, the New York Wheel (its working title for now), would have enclosed, air-conditioned gondolas holding up to 35 people that would be much like luxury boxes at modern stadiums and arenas, except moving slowly, high in the air.
A single ride around the wheel would take 80 minutes and offer breathtaking views of New York Harbor and skyline, especially at night.
Beyond just a ride, there would also be luxury food and beverage service available on the wheel - all at prices of up to over a hundred dollars per rider.
“They could actually start construction in 2014, and hopefully by Valentine’s Day on 2015 everybody could [go] up and propose to their sweethearts,” Borough President James Molinaro, an enthusiastic supporter, said.
The wheel would be built west of the Postcards Memorial, where a parking lot now stands. On the other side of Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George, closer to the St. George Ferry Terminal, the EDC hopes to attract another developer to build upscale stores and restaurants. That parcel, as well, has elicited strong interest.
Any parking spots lost in the development of these projects would be replaced at locations nearby. Eventually, more parking would be probably added as the St. George waterfront’s popularity grows.
The St. George Station concept, envisioned years ago by then-Borough President Guy Molinari (although not in quite this way, perhaps) would become a reality at last.
The key is that both these attractions would be right next to a transportation terminal that sees 2 million people, many of them tourists looking for new and exciting things to do in New York, pass through its doors.
Getting those tourists off the ferryboats and onto our shores to see what Staten Island has to offer has long been the goal of borough officials; now the EDC, with this bold, sweeping proposal, is poised to make that happen. With the giant Ferris wheel and the swanky retail area, tourists would finally have a destination to plan to see in their itinerary, aside from merely traveling back and forth on the world-famous ferry.
Perhaps many of the sightseers would even linger and wander over to see a revitalized National Lighthouse Museum or, down Richmond Terrace, Snug Harbor Cultural Center. If the leaders of cultural organizations in the borough can position themselves to take advantage of the likely huge influx of visitors, it would be an enormous shot in the arm for their groups. Similarly, restaurants and other businesses in the surrounding communities would reap huge benefits.
This would be the WOW factor that would finally snare the out-of-towners to see what was happening across the bay from Manhattan. The worldwide buzz about this would be colossal.
There will be critics to be sure, and there has already been some grumbling, just as there was when the ballpark was proposed. Inevitably, some residents of the area will complain about their views being blocked, but given the design of the wheel, and its enormous size, it can easily be seen through and it will only add to the appeal or our long-neglected waterfront, not detract from it.
Certainly, smart planning is essential to make this work, and all those who care about the borough should want to see it work. But this is the perfect opportunity to transform our waterfront into the exciting destination it should be. We cannot let the whining of NIMBY naysayers cause it to be lost.
