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It still had several steps to complete before the giant wheel could be installed, temporarily, in the Plaza de Panama as early as Spring.
The idea was to create a way for visitors to dine safely amid the coronavirus pandemic inside one of 36 enclosed gondolas, which would provide sweeping views of San Diego. It would have been operated for three to six months by Sky Views of America and managed by The Cohn Restaurant Group, which owns the iconic Prado Restaurant and Tea Pavilion that are located in the park.
The Balboa Park Star can carry up to 288 passenger-diners.
A petition opposing a temporary ferris wheel in Balboa Park s Plaza de Panama has more than 2,600 signatures and counting. The city still has to approve the installation, which the Balboa Park committee voted 7-1 to move forward earlier this month.
The Balboa Park Star was proposed in October by the Cohn Restaurant Group, owner of the Prado Restaurant and Tea Pavilion, and Sky Views of America as a 3-6 month cure for the pandemic blahs.
It would occupy 56 x 75 feet of the area between the San Diego Museum of Art and the Timken Museum, offering rides, views, and three-course dining in the sky.