NIMBYism

'It's total NIMBYism': Feud erupts over the future of Golden Gate Park's Ferris wheel

Andrew Chamings

It took a fleet of 14 loaded trailers from Cincinnati and two years to build.

Then the pandemic came, and the 150-foot Ferris wheel sat still in the middle of Golden Gate Park for six months.

At a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by Mayor London Breed, the wheel finally started spinning in October, albeit for only five weeks before the second COVID-19 surge again stopped it in its tracks.

Now, the future of the SkyStar Observation Wheel hangs in the balance, and it seems like everyone has an opinion.

The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department plans on giving the wheel four more years of life, but environmental organizations, including the historic Sierra Club, and some local residents' groups oppose the move.

They argue that the attraction is a waste of money, light and fuel as the city battles through the hardships of the ongoing pandemic.

"We're in the middle of a pandemic and a climate and housing crisis and there is seriously a proposal to keep this diesel burning ferris wheel in the middle of a city park for four more years. Take it down now. "

The Sierra Club, in an opinion piece posted this month, claims the light pollution from the wheel is having a negative impact on birds in the park, as well as bats, insects, amphibians, and other animals.

"The wheel is brighter than any other lighted object in the western part of San Francisco, allowing it to be seen from more than a mile away," the group wrote. "Our city parks are a vital refuge for wild animals struggling to deal with the loss of habitat and open space. Wildlife needs darkness."

The Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council (HANC), represented by Supervisor Dean Preston, also wants to see the Ferris wheel gone.

“I’m not seeing the basis for such a long extension,” Preston told the San Francisco Chronicle. (SFGATE and the San Francisco Chronicle are both owned by Hearst but operate independently of one another.) "As one constituent said to me, 'This is a park, not an amusement park.’”

Others say that the council's objection is nothing but NIMBYism, and the Ferris wheel provides some fun for the city at a time when it sorely needs it.

Sachin Agarwal — founder of Grow SF, a group of tech workers advocating for housing, transit and better public schools in San Francisco — doesn't believe the HANC is actually concerned about the birds.

"It's total NIMBYism, they want to maintain the San Francisco they have lived in. They don't want to see new folks come in," Agarwal told SFGATE.

"We think we're all Democrats here, but there are very different shades of Democrats. There's a vocal minority of folks who don't want to see any development in the city," Agarwal added.

He also points to the same council's opposition to a development at UCSF Parnassus, which would build a new hospital and add housing.

"It's mind boggling. We're in a pandemic here, and UCSF wants to build a world-class hospital and research facility in our backyard. We should be thanking them and supporting them," Agarwal said.

(The HANC did not respond to a request for comment at time of publication.)

The San Francisco Planning Department's Historic Preservation Commission will vote on the four-year SkyStar plan on Wednesday. If approved, the attraction will reopen as soon as San Francisco is removed from the purple tier of COVID-19 restrictions and operate in the park until March 2025.

A petition — named "Ferris Wheel's are Fun!" — has been launched by advocacy group Grow the Richmond to keep the wheel spinning for four more years. The campaign pointedly criticizes those who seek to remove the attraction from the city.

"Unfortunately anti-fun scolds are at it again. The Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council (HANC) voted against the continued operation of the Skystar on Thursday," the petition reads. "The local chapter of Sierra Club has embarrassingly tied themselves in knots about the environmental impacts despite the fact thousands of people drive to destinations in Golden Gate Park every day."

At the ribbon-cutting ceremony in October, Breed celebrated the wheel, which was built to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Golden Gate Park, by remembering her childhood experiences in the park.

"Every now and then, a teacher would bring us on field trips to Golden Gate Park. We came to Golden Gate Park, slid on the big slide, we’d be lucky if someone left their cardboard behind, we went to the old de Young Museum and the old Academy of Sciences," said Breed. "And as we celebrate 150 years ... the point is our parks stand the test of time. Our parks are what create the magic that makes us love San Francisco so much."

The vote on the plan by the Historic Preservation Commission will be open to the public via livestream at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday.