By GIL STERN STERN ZOHARthe Tel Aviv wheel will stand at 80 m.521(photo credit: Reuters)
Dubai-based Freij Entertainment International, which together with its British subsidiary Wheels Entertainments Ltd. is building and/ or operating dozens of giant Ferris wheels in the Persian Gulf, Hong Kong, Paris, London and elsewhere worldwide, recently won a tender to build an 80-meter-high observation wheel in Tel Aviv Port.The sky-high spinning wheel, featuring 42 six-seat air-conditioned gondolas, is slated to begin operation in April 2014. Two of the capsules will be fitted to allow customers to enjoy a meal from one of the port’s swanky restaurants.Privately owned by CEO Freij El Zein, Freij Entertainment International, the company behind the iconic London Eye Ferris wheel, bills itself as the “world’s largest traveling operator of funfairs, carnival rides and skilled games on the circuit today.”The Tel Aviv Ferris wheel will offer Israelis and tourists the opportunity to enjoy breathtaking views of the city’s landscape, according to a statement released by Otzar Mifalei Yam, the government corporation that operates the refurbished Tel Aviv Port.“A Ferris wheel is a recreational activity that is popular among all people of all ages, and we are pleased to bring this ride to the Israeli audience,” noted Otzar Mifalei Yam CEO Iris Baratz.The gondolas will be equipped with videos documenting the history of Tel Aviv Port – which was built in 1938 following the general strike that closed Jaffa harbor during the 1936-1939 Great Arab Revolt against British Mandatory rule. The new port, with its Jewish stevedores hauling Jaffa oranges, became a proud accomplishment of Zionist state-building. But the last crate of citrus cargo was loaded at Tel Aviv’s tiny harbor in 1965 following the opening of the modern Ashdod Port.With no more vessels docking, the gritty area in north Tel Aviv near the Yarkon River was abandoned to garages and rust-belt industry.A decade ago, Otzar Mifalei Yam and Atarim (a company co-owned by the Tel Aviv Municipality and the Tourism Ministry that develops the city’s tourist sites) began to gentrify the scenic but derelict port into a recreation and culture hub. Today, more than 60 food, fashion, health and communication businesses, as well as banquet halls and clubs, operate in the port complex and along its boardwalk – which Baratz said attracts 120,000 visitors weekly.While the Tel Aviv Ferris wheel will likely become a postcard landmark, it will be relatively small compared to today’s mega observation wheels. The Freij Entertainment-operated Singapore Flyer, currently the world record-holder, soars to 165 meters – taller than a 50-story skyscraper. The original observation wheel, built by George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. for Chicago’s 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, stood at 80.4 meters – fractionally taller than Tel Aviv’s newest marvel, which itself will be more than twice as high as the Ferris wheel at Rishon Lezion’s Superland amusement park.
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