A giant Ferris wheel that was supposed to lure tourists to New York City�s least populous borough has officially been grounded, developers announced Tuesday.

�After years of planning, the developers of The New York Wheel announce, with great disappointment, that the dream of building a world-class attraction in Staten Island will unfortunately not come to fruition,� said Cristyne Nicholas, a spokeswoman for the project.

The developers of the planned 630-foot (192-meter) wheel had been battling contractor Mammoet-Starneth in court since May 2017 when the contractor walked off the job and was fired.

Four 100-ton pedestals are all that�s been erected at the site to date. It�s unclear what will happen to the pedestals or to the already built wheel parts that the developers reportedly have been paying $500,000 a month to store.

The New York Wheel was one of several giant Ferris wheels planned for sites around the world following the success of the 443-foot (135-meter) London Eye, which opened in 2000.

Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg promised that the wheel would offer� unparalleled and breathtaking views� when he announced it in 2012.

But his successor, Bill de Blasio, refused to float the non-taxable bonds that the developers were seeking to restart the project.

�It�s the kind of tax-free bond financing that we would reserve only for situations that we felt were smart investments for the city and that were economically viable projects,� de Blasio said at last month. �And so far, what we�ve seen in this case, unfortunately is a project that is not going to be economically viable.�

Stephanie Baez, a spokeswoman for the city�s Economic Development Corporation, said the city is committed �to working with the community and local stakeholders to determine potential uses for the Wheel site.�

A total of $450 million in private funds had been invested in the wheel, $206 million of it from EB-5 investors from overseas. The EB-5 program allows investors to obtain U.S. residency.

Tom Rosenfeld, the president of EB-5 investor firm CanAm Enterprises, said the company will work with the project�s 412 EB-5 investors to see them through the immigration process. He said the project is near enough to completion to grant the investors permanent U.S. residency.

(AP)