If you wanted to ride a giant Ferris wheel in downtown Atlanta, you’ll have to wait a little longer

SkyView Atlanta delayed by storms, utility work
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Shipping containers full of Ferris wheel parts

Photograph courtesy of SkyView Atlanta

If you were hoping for a Ferris wheel and fireworks combo, you’re out of luck: SkyView Atlanta won’t open in time for the Fourth of July.

The delay is partly due to the spate of stormy weather. But the biggest wrinkle comes not from the sky but below the ground. Like the Atlanta Streetcar, the Ferris wheel project has been slowed by utility issues, namely the recent detection of a Georgia Power duct that cannot be moved. The duct discovery opened a Pandora’s box of difficulties: though the Ferris wheel only had to be moved by one foot, the construction crew had to use 120,000 extra pounds of concrete and 400,000 more pounds of stone to compensate for the shift in height.

The 200-foot wheel, traveling from its former home in Pensacola, Florida, should be up and running by the third week of July at the latest, according to SkyView. The company sent photos both of the attraction being dismantled and the shipping containers bringing it ATL-ward.The goal is to have SkyView Atlanta set up in about two weeks once the new platform is complete; normally, this process takes four weeks to complete.

We’ll keep you posted about further advancements (or delays).

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