Brooks Trimper talks about his amusement park, which has been in his family for generations.
OCEAN CITY, Md. — Trimper's Rides unveiled its Big Wheel ride for the second year last week, but there's one problem — the Ferris wheel might be in the wrong location.
The 149-foot tall ride appears to be “significantly” encroaching on town property, which is a code violation, according to former Ocean City council member Dennis Dare. Trimper's denies the allegation.
In October, Trimper’s Rides President Antoinette Bruno asked the mayor and town council for permission to move the Ferris wheel farther east on its property to a point where it would slightly overhang the Ocean City Boardwalk.
At the time, Bruno told town leaders that Trimper’s was asking to move the Ferris wheel at the wish of the attraction’s operator.
“The wheel moving is part of (the contractor’s) interest in staying in Ocean City,” Bruno said. “They want that position or they’re not sure they will make the necessary funds to cover setting up the wheel again in 2021.”
City code allows signs and certain items to encroach 4 feet into the Boardwalk, but Trimper’s plan was to have the Ferris wheel hang over the Boardwalk by almost 13 feet.
Town staff had mixed feelings about the plan and didn’t feel comfortable approving it, so they brought it to town leaders Oct. 5. Ultimately the plan was tabled by Ocean City leaders who had concerns about its safety, the precedent it could set and what legal implications it might have on the town.
The issue was never revisited by town leaders, who were asked to approve the 13-foot encroachment, and now it appears the Ferris wheel isn’t where it should be, according to Dare.
Dare was a town council member when Trimper’s went before the council in October. He has since stepped down.
Dare was one of multiple council members who had voiced concerns about the plan in October. He worried the ride wouldn’t be safe for the public below and what precedent it would set for other Boardwalk businesses respecting the town’s right of way.
“It’s an encroachment of a public right of way,” Dare said. “You can’t take your fire pit and patio furniture, and set it up in the street. That's an encroachment on the public right of way.”
Trimper’s Rides disagrees that the Big Wheel is in violation of town code, according to an emailed statement from Bruno.
“To my knowledge no one from the city has measured the purported overhang,” Bruno said. “We have arranged for a surveyor to survey the ride and determine the extent of any overhang that may (or may not) exist.”
The town of Ocean City was contacted for this report but had yet to offer a comment as of Monday afternoon.
Bruno asked the public to understand how complex it is to construct a ride the size of the Big Wheel. Erecting the 149-foot Ferris wheel, with a 75-foot foundation, is “no trivial undertaking," she said.
“I assure you that, during the placement and installation of this ride, we took the utmost care to ensure that the ride stayed appropriately placed and that any error that may have occurred during the installation was unintentional,” Bruno said.
Yet Dare expressed doubt.
“The guy who owns the ride erects it at state fairs everywhere. If he doesn't know the measurements, who the hell would?” Dare said.
The encroachment is a code violation, and it’s up to town leaders to figure out what to do about the Big Wheel, Dare said. Ocean City could decide to do nothing and allow the Big Wheel to stay in its position until July when it’s taken down for the season.
Dare didn’t support that idea because he felt it “proves the theory that it's easier to ask forgiveness, and then ask for permission,” he said.
“The other option is to have it shut down and have them move it,” Dare said. “It’s portable.”
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The Link LonkJune 08, 2021 at 01:27AM
https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2021/06/07/ocean-city-md-trimpers-ferris-wheel-moved-boardwalk-big-wheel/7583621002/
Ocean City didn't let Trimper's move its Ferris wheel. Was it moved anyway? - Delmarva Now
https://news.google.com/search?q=Wheel&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
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