The 150-ft.-tall Wonder Wheel at Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusement Park on Coney Island’s boardwalk is now lit with amber LEDs, which are powered by solar panels. Sixteen sliding cars have been outfitted on the famous Ferris wheel, which returned for its 90th-anniversary season last March. The attraction hadn’t been lit for 25 years or so, because the lighting-system wiring had badly needed to be updated.
Thirty-two, thin-film solar panels, which generate 960W, were installed atop the Wheel’s “swinging” carriages. The solar energy is stored in lightweight, lithium-phosphate batteries, which are considered the next-generation, electric-car batteries. The panels are connected to wireless charge controllers that regulate the batteries.
Three generations of the Vourderis family have owned and operated the Wonder Wheel. Deno John (D.J.) Vourderis, 29, is “solar-certified,” having been trained to properly select and install solar panels. He said the thin-film panels operate even when they’re in the shade. “I really only need a sunny day every other day, or every third day, to run the lights.”
He chose panels that incorporate copper indium gallium (di)selenide (CIGS) absorbers, which promise cost savings in the expensive solar-panel market, because they could handle the vibrations of the rides, and “they’re made in America.”
D.J. had originally opted for RGB LEDs to produce more colors, but his family (and the New York City Landmark Preservation Commission) wanted to preserve the traditional yellow-amber color of the Wheel’s lights throughout the years.
The lightbulbs the LEDs eventually replaced had posed another problem. Their original design disappeared in the 1950s, and, subsequently, bulbs purchased from the New York Transit Authority kept the Wheel illuminated until the ’80s.
In 1983, the family patriarch, Denos Vourderis, bought the Wheel from Fred Garms, who, in 1935, took over after his father, Herman, died. In 1994, D.J.’s father, Steve, and his uncle, Dennis, took over when their Denos died.
Herman Garms and the Eccentric Ferris Wheel Co. built the Wheel in 1920, having used 100% Bethlehem Steel that was forged on the premises. The 18 co-owners helped construct the Wheel to insure quality throughout the building process, and as a result, the Wheel has maintained a perfect safety record.
Family ties
Denos, or Constantinos Dionysios Vourderis, the eighth of 22 children, was born in Aigion, Greece. He shipped out as a merchant mariner at age 14 and eventually gained entry into the U.S. After World War II, he married and had four children, whom he took regularly to Coney Island. He dreamed of owning the Wheel.
In the late ’60s, he managed a bar and grill on Coney’s boardwalk, then owned a hot-dog stand in Ward’s Kiddie Park. By June 1983, he had saved enough money to buy Kiddie Park and the Wheel. Now, the family has 25 rides and two arcades.
One of Denos’ last wishes was to convert from Con Edison electricity to Brooklyn Union gas to fuel the park. The conversion reduced their energy bill 66%. Also, Denos hated Con Ed. (In its defense, the power company is now pushing solar power as an alternative energy source.)
Dennis Vourderis said his father built his American Dream here. “For my family, it’s more than an amusement park. It’s our life, past and future.”
The Sunny story
There’s also another interesting tradition surrounding the Wheel. Because Coney Island has always remained openly public, and not gated, safety has been a concern. The popular Wheel needed a guard.
Fred Garm set up Sunshine to patrol the ride — in a carriage. When Denos and his sons took over, their German shepherd, Rocky, patrolled at night and rode by day. When Rocky died, another German shepherd, Kato, took over.
In 2006, after the Vourderis family lost the lease to Deno’s Go-Kart (another Coney ride), and Kato passed away, Sunny, the family’s former Go-Kart guard, came over to preside over the Wheel.
At noon every day, Sunny climbed into her customized, white, No. 4 car, with a bucket of kibble and a bowl of water. The beloved 15-year-old Rottweiler, however, passed away in May and is buried under the Wheel.
To learn more about the Wonder Wheel, the Vourderises and Coney Island, visit Charles Denson’s www.coneyislandhistory.org.