SEATTLE — The iconic Seattle Space Needle is finishing up a major renovation that will the latest in construction technology and materials to provide a more open, barrier-free view of the city and the surrounding Puget Sound from the 605-foot-tall structure.
The new views, 35 percent more expansive than allowed by the original technology when the Space Needle was built for the 1962 World’s Fair, are made possible with the installation of 48 floor-to-ceiling glass panels, each measuring 11 feet high, seven feet wide and 2.5 feet thick, that replace safety cages that created breaks in the view.
The open-air observation deck will include attached glass benches that tilt to give a downward view and allow visitors to feel as if they are dangling their feet over Seattle.
Inside, a circular stairway of steel, wood and glass will connect the upper observation level to a lower level that features the world’s first and only glass rotating floor observation deck and lounge.
The Space Needle will also feature a state-of-the-art ADA lift for the mobility impaired.
