Blue Wheel Of Fortune
by Kym Backland
Title
Blue Wheel Of Fortune
Artist
Kym Backland
Medium
Photograph
Description
Look at all the pretty colors! I really liked when the Seattle's Great Wheel turned to this purple blue color. It's quite the detailed light show. The theme was red, white, and blue this night when I watched the wheel. Not sure what the significance of this was. It sure was fun to see the lights and colors change. Here is the story of how the Seattle Great Wheel came to be built in the Emerald City.
The Seattle Great Wheel has a wonderful light show! On this night it seemed to be a patriotic theme. Red, white, and blue. They have their light shows on the weekends, and it usually correspondes to some event that is taking place in the city that night. I'm not sure what was going on this night, that would be of a red, white, and blue nature? I was totally into looking at the changing colors for quite a long time. Here is a little history of it. The Seattle Great Wheel is a giant Ferris wheel located on Pier 57 on the banks of Puget Sound in Seattle, Washington, United States. With an overall height of 175 feet (53.3 m) it was the tallest Ferris wheel on the west coast of the United States when it opened on June 29, 2012. Participants in the ceremony, which took place at 2:30 p.m., included a presentation of colors by the US Coast Guard, a speech by Seattle mayor Michael McGinn, and entertainment by the University of Washington cheerleaders, spirit team, and marching band. Approximately 200 people lined up for the first ride on the wheel.Tickets cost $13 per person, with discounts for children and seniors. One luxury VIP gondola with red leather seats and a glass floor is available and costs $50 per person.
Construction and design
Seattle was the third city in North America to offer a wheel of this design,[6] following the Niagara SkyWheel at Clifton Hill, Niagara Falls, Canada, which is also 175 feet (53 m) tall, and the larger Myrtle Beach SkyWheel in South Carolina, which is 187 feet (57 m) tall. The Seattle wheel is the only one of the three to be built over water.The Seattle Great Wheel has 42 climate-controlled gondolas, each able to carry up to eight passengers, giving a maximum capacity of 252. The 12-minute ride extends 40 feet (12 m) out over Elliott Bay. Development history Seattle businessman and waterfront developer Hal Griffith has envisioned a Ferris wheel on Elliott Bay for nearly 30 years. Along with his family, he is the owner of the Pier 57 upon which the Seattle Great Wheel is located. In addition to the wheel, the pier is the location of Miner's Landing, which consists of souvenir gift shops, tourist attractions, and variety of seafood restaurants.During the 1980s, Griffith began developing plans to ensure the perpetual existence and success of the family's business ventures on the pier. His plans had long included continual development of the waterfront on Puget Sound to provide entertainment and recreational opportunities for tourists and local residents. His goal was to drive success through innovative ideas, staying a step ahead of the competition. Griffith often met logistical and political roadblocks that inhibited development on the waterfront, but he was determined to build the Ferris wheel on Pier 57, located adjacent to the Alaskan Way Viaduct During development and acquisition of the wheel, the State of Washington, King County, the City of Seattle, and the Port of Seattle solidified plans to dig a tunnel to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct, which had been damaged in an earthquake in 2001. The plans included creating an underground tunnel that would run beneath the city's downtown core. The initial phase of demolition and removal of the viaduct began on October 21, 2011.The new tunnel is scheduled to open between late 2015 and early 2016. While the traffic issue would be resolved, the plans call for bypassing the businesses on the waterfront, hindering development on the bay. Griffith was concerned that without a large tourist attraction, many waterfront businesses would suffer and go out of business during construction. The Seattle Great Wheel was designed to resolve these issues and draw visitors to the waterfront.While Griffith applied for building permits in November 2010, the project took approximately three years to complete. General work outside of actual building included retrofitting the pilings that support the pier
Uploaded
April 15th, 2013
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Viewed 533 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/18/2024 at 4:41 PM
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Comments (77)
Kym Backland
PAMELA JOHNSON, Hello new group leader, Thank you for the "triple features" today. I appreciate the feature of my photo BLUE WHEEL OF FORTUNE in your new group called BLUE. Happy Super Moon Monday to ya!
Olivier Calas
Would love to see that greta image in my "At the Fairground" group Kym!
Kym Backland replied:
Olivier, Oh, I would have entered it, it's just not taken at a fairground, so I didn't enter it.. I'll go over and submit it, and see what you think! Thanks for the visits and votes!
Alexandra Jordankova
Great work - nicely done - voted
Kym Backland replied:
Alexandra, I didn't realize you did so MANY notes and VOTES.. thank you for all your time and attention!
James Brunker
Beautiful image Kym, simple and effective! Thank you for your recent comment on one of my photos, much appreciated!
Christine Burdine
Great shot! And just down the street from my olde friend Sylvester in the Ye Olde Curiousty Shoppe. Love our Seattle waterfront and love this addition too.
Kym Backland replied:
Christine, That is cool! Sylvester at the Ye Olde Curiousity Shop! That is a SEATTLE Staple... Who doesn't love him and that store? Thanks for your comments a few days ago!
Marija Djedovic
This is beautiful, I love these colours... and nice atmosphere... The title is good. Best regards dear Kym:) Voted
Kym Backland replied:
Marija, Hello again! I have missed your smiling face! Thanks for popping in yesterday!
Kym Backland
FOR THE LOVE OF ART, And the final feature of the day! Thank you for the feature today of my photo BLUE WHEEL OF FORTUNE in your group FOR THE LOVE OF ART GALLERY much appreciated.. Have a good rest of your day and weekend!
Kym Backland
AYMEN, Thank you for the mulitple features today! ! Thank you for the feature today of my photo BLUE WHEEL OF FORTUNE in your groupRED AND BLUE.. much appreciated.. Have a good evening Aymen!
Kym Backland
BOB AND NADINE, Good Afternoon! Thank you for the feature today of my photo BLUE WHEEL OF FORTUNE in your new group ARTIST NEWS.. much appreciated!
Kym Backland
MICHAEL, Hello again! Thank you for the feature today of my photo BLUE WHEEL OF FORTUNE in your new group NEW ART WORKS 2, I have to remember this is the new...two! Thanks again Michael!
Roxy Riou
Ah! I was looking at this and it seems to have that wild effect where it looks like the lights are moving. :D Brilliant night shot! Favorited and voted. xox
Kym Backland replied:
Roxy Riou, What a fun name to say! Of course I love your purple hair.. Did I tell you this before? Anyways, you are CORRECT, the lights are moving ...in and out, a whole entire light show! It can make you dizzy if you watch for a long time...which I did..thanks for your vote and giving it a fave click too!