ROANOKE, Va. – You may have heard about plans to build a Ferris wheel on the roof of Center in the Square. While the idea has hit a bit of a hurdle, leaders say the project isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
“We were hoping to get some additional support from the state, but this time this one didn’t come through,” Del. Sam Rasoul (D) said.
That support? $600,000 for a Downtown Roanoke economic development study.
Rasoul raised the request earlier in the General Assembly session.
“This one unfortunately did not make it, but we’ll continue doing everything we can to help the region,” he said.
It would have evaluated potential projects and attractions to boost the downtown economy - from a possible casino at the Berglund Center, to the future of the science museum of Western Virginia, to a Ferris wheel on the roof of Center in the Square.
“We’re trying to continue to make sure that Roanoke keeps growing,” he said.
But even without the state backing the study, Center in the Square is pushing ahead and not giving up on the idea of their ‘sky garden’.
“We’re not reinventing the wheel so to speak. We’re not going to give up. If we know there’s something we believe the community would benefit from, it’s still worth pursuing,” President and General Manager of Center in the Square Tara Marciniak said.
While Center in the Square did ask for state help funding the economic development survey, Marciniak wants to assure people that both the center and the project itself are not state-funded.
“It seems to be that some of the community members believe that we are state-owned or city-owned and operated, and we are not. We are a separate nonprofit organization, so tax dollars do not go towards funding Center in the Square,” Marciniak said.
In fact, she says they’re already working to fund their own study, which would cost about $250 thousand.
“I had some donors reach out to me and say, ‘Hey, if that plan falls through, we’d like to contribute.’ So, we’ve actually raised half of the money we need for our own study,” she said.
The goal is tourism for downtown.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg. I think if this concept proves itself, we can start looking at some bigger projects,” she said.
There’s no clear timeline on the study or project right now. Stay with 10 News on-air and online as we learn more.