Paris ferris wheel comes down

The last gondolas are removed from the wheel on Thursday

PARIS, France -- Workers using cranes and ladders have begun taking down a giant Ferris wheel that has been part of the Paris skyline for two years.

The 60-metre (200-foot) tall attraction was the subject of a dispute between the ride's owner and the city's mayor, who said earlier this month that the wheel had outstayed its welcome at the historic Place de la Concorde.

Owner Marcel Campion, who faced fines of 15,000 euros ($13,400) a day after losing a court battle with authorities, agreed last week to dismantle the wheel after the mayor said the wheel could be re-erected in the city.

Construction teams on Thursday began unhinging the wheel's cabins and lighted panels and packing them into trucks. A City Hall spokeswoman said the process could take months.

VIDEO The wheel in the shadow of the tower (January 11) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)

"When I heard it was coming down, I thought it was a pity," Elaine Thompson, a British woman who lives in Paris and was walking past the wheel, told The Associated Press. "I had ridden it once at night and the view was spectacular."

The Ferris wheel was set up as part of the city's millennium festivities. It was originally expected to be taken down at the end of 2000. However, former Paris Mayor Jean Tiberi agreed to let it stay up through the end of 2001.

Heavy-lifting is scheduled to start on Friday when a crane will remove the wheel.

Campion and city authorities are due to hold more talks this week about finding another site in one of the city's many parks, but if the two sides cannot agree, the mayor has suggested Paris may buy the wheel.

Campion has said his selling price was 20 million French francs ($2.7 million).

The Eiffel Tower was also originally planned as a temporary structure

"Starting this week, we are holding discussions for a possible purchase of the Ferris wheel. I am in favour of it staying in Paris," Mayor Bertrand Delanoe told France-2 television on Monday.

Last week, hundreds of fairground workers rallied to support Campion in his bid for another year on the prime site, saying city hall had not suggested a suitable alternative.

However, city officials said enough was enough, after having already granted Campion an extension for 2001.