The Skyneedle, Brisbane, Queensland
Encyclopedia
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
skyline which was constructed especially for World Expo 88
Expo '88
World Expo 88, also known as Expo '88, was a World's Fair held in Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia, during a six-month period between Saturday, 30 April 1988 and Sunday, 30 October 1988...
.
The 88 m landmark was earmarked for relocation
Structure relocation
A structure relocation is the process of moving a structure from one location to another. There are two main ways for a structure to be moved: disassembling and then reassembling it at the required destination, or transporting it whole. For the latter, the building may be pushed on temporary rails...
to Tokyo Disneyland
Tokyo Disneyland
is a 115 acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983...
(following the completion of Expo '88). However, hairdresser Stefan Ackerie
Stefan Ackerie
Stefan Ackerie, usually known by the mononym Stefan, is a businessman and hairdresser from Brisbane, Australia. He owns a chain of approximately fifty hairdressing salons throughout Queensland and New South Wales, as well as the Brisbane restaurant Jo Jo's, a large thematic restaurant and bar...
stepped in and purchased the Skyneedle, which was then relocated to the Stefan HQ at South Brisbane
South Brisbane, Queensland
South Brisbane is an inner city suburb of Brisbane, Australia located on the southern bank of the Brisbane River, directly connected to the central business district by the Kurilpa, Victoria and Goodwill bridges....
. After purchase, Stefan added his firm's signature rainbow rings logo to the top of the tower.
The Skyneedle' light, which is capable of emitting a beam of light that may be seen 60 km away, is rarely seen except on special occasions, because of safety concerns for flight paths around Brisbane Airport
Brisbane Airport
Brisbane Airport is the sole passenger airport serving Brisbane and the third busiest in Australia, after Melbourne and Sydney Airports. Brisbane Airport has won many awards. Located in the suburb with the same name, the airport serves the city of Brisbane and the surrounding metropolitan area...
.
On 4 November 2006, the Skyneedle caught fire due to an electrical fault, this incident being the second of its kind after a similar fire had broken out in 1988. Subsequent investigations have found that the fault was most likely caused by bird droppings. Ackerie has stated that it will be restored to its former glory. On 5 November 2006, Ackerie revealed that the Skyneedle will be technologically overhauled with the additional feature of a sound system.
On 14 March 2009, the top 22-metre section of the Skyneedle was removed. Stefan announced that the section was being rebuilt with new laser technology. . The Skyneedle, with its new technology, made its debut on 23 April 2009 but was officially activated on 1 May by Stefan and Channel Nine weatherman Garry Youngberry on the 6pm news. The new lightshow includes an RGB LED
LEd
LEd is a TeX/LaTeX editing software working under Microsoft Windows. It is a freeware product....
display strip from Italy and a powerful set of German-made spotlights.