After lying dormant for almost four years, the beleaguered Melbourne Star Observation Wheel is expected to turn once more, although one of its new owners admits he’s nervous given “it’s failed so many times before”.
On Monday, it was announced that MB Star Properties Pty Ltd, the owner of the 120-metre structure that went into liquidation in 2021, will be restructured under an $11m takeover.
Under the deal, a new partnership will take control of the wheel, made up of Melbourne-based Skyline Attractions, the operator of several smaller wheels including at the nearby Melbourne Convention Centre; US-based Ray Cammack Shows, which operates wheels at major events including Coachella and the Los Angeles County Fair; and RoBu Group, which bought the wheel in early 2021.
Skyline Attractions, run by husband and wife Jay and Jane Jones, will oversee day-to-day operations.
The attraction is scheduled to reopen in 2026, although Jay Jones declined to provide a specific date.
He said years of inactivity meant “a lot of maintenance” was required and the team wanted to manage expectations.
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“Over many years, this thing has been over promised and under delivered. We don’t want to do that,” he told reporters on Monday.
Planned upgrades also include repainting the wheel, installing new motors and refurbishing cabins with better wifi.
Jones said the project would help make Docklands – one of Melbourne’s most divisive suburbs – “shine” again.
“Anyone who hasn’t been to the Docklands thinks, ‘Oh, the Docklands is terrible.’ But actually, we came down here for the ice skating a couple of weekends ago, and the place had an atmosphere. The only problem was the big dark thing in the middle of it,” he said, referring to the wheel.
“Every city has got a major observation wheel, people go on them, and the Docklands are doing a great job of making this place an entertainment precinct that’s not just for gamblers. I think this is a real opportunity to get it working again.”
Jones said he was nervous, given the wheel’s chequered past.
“It’s failed so many times before. Of course, I’m nervous. But that’s made us do our due diligence over and over again … it is a world-class piece of equipment in a world-class city, so why can’t we make it work?” Jones said.
Initially called the Southern Star Observation Wheel, the Melbourne Star first opened in late 2008 but only operated for 40 days before closing, after a contract worker inadvertently discovered cracks in the steel up to three metres long.
The fault was at first attributed to a heatwave, but later turned out be a structural problem. Much of the 40-storey, 1,500-tonne structure was sold for scrap and the wheel was redesigned and rebuilt from scratch.
In 2011, during reconstruction works, the wheel broke free from its restraints, began rolling in strong winds and injured a worker. A year later, a spokesperson for the wheel said it could reopen as early as January 2013 if Melbourne had “no wind, no rain for the next four months”.
With its new name, the Melbourne Star eventually reopened in December 2013 – but closed for good in September 2021 when its operators went into liquidation, blaming “the global Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent travel restrictions and sustained shutdowns, adding to pre-existing challenges of operating amid increased high-rise development and changes in the Docklands area”.
Lord mayor Nicholas Reece, whose recent reelection bid included reviving the wheel, said the City of Melbourne had been involved in “many behind-the-scenes conversations to help get the Star turning once more”.
“I’m stoked we can now celebrate openly with the rest of the city, and I can’t wait for the maiden voyage,” Reece said.
The new team behind the Melbourne Star anticipates it will welcome a quarter of a million visitors in the first year of operation.
