YORK’S big wheel will stop spinning at the end of next month, with 16 staff losing their jobs.

The operators of the 53-metre observation wheel in the Royal York Hotel’s grounds have confirmed its last day will be September 29, saying they did not believe City of York Council would grant another extension to its planning permission.

The authority narrowly approved allowing the Wheel of York, owned by Dubai-based Freij World Attractions, to remain at its current site for seven more months in February - just before it was due to be dismantled - despite objections from residents of neighbouring Westgate Apartments.

The council’s planning committee said at the time that any further applications to keep the wheel in the hotel grounds would be unlikely to succeed and it must be completely removed by the end of October.

Since opening at the Royal York Hotel in December 2011, the 42-pod wheel has attracted about 465,000 customers, although its former owners Great City Attractions Global went into administration in July 2012. Freij, which subsequently bought the structure, said the staff who will be made redundant are all York-based.

“While we have been asked by the hotel to apply for another extension and we would love to stay, we have to respect the comments made by the planning committee that they would not recommend us applying again, and also those of the apartments opposite the wheel who object to it,” said a Freij spokesman.

“We have looked at all options, including closing at 6pm to try to help satisfy all parties.”

The company said the hotel site was ideal and it had paid the council about £51,000 a year in business rates, while the hotel had received a percentage of takings. It said it had been unable to find a suitable alternative city-centre site for the wheel.

John Lowery, operations manager for Wheels Entertainments, Freij’s UK-based arm, said: “We would like to thank everybody who has been on the Wheel of York during our stay, and we hope to announce a new UK city-centre site for the wheel very soon.”

Mike Slater, the council's assistant director of city and environmental services, said: "The council wants to facilitate viable, good-quality attractions coming to the city to add to our offer for visitors and residents alike, which the York Wheel has provided since 2011.

"However, when planning permission was granted for the York Wheel, this was for a temporary basis only. While Freij World Attractions could reapply for a further extension, the planning committee has given a clear indication they have concerns this could lead to the attraction becoming more long-term or permanent."

Westgate Apartments resident and director Terence Shorte said: “We are not happy to see the wheel leave York from an enterprise and tourism point of view, but it was positioned in the wrong place in front of a residential building.

"Its location should have been better thought through from the beginning, as it upset a lot of people.”