By the late fall, a domed structure rising above the turntable will house 30 fish sculptures, created by George Tsypin, who designed "The Little Mermaid" for Broadway. The luminescent fish will stand more than 9 feet tall and will glow with internal LED and fiber-optic lights. In the center of each fish, Tsypin is carving out a space so visitors can sit inside.
During the ride, which will last about 3 minutes, SeaGlass will reverberate with music scored to resemble deep underwater sounds, and projections of fish swimming through New York Harbor will flit across the walls.
The carousel has three interior turntables in addition to the one large one, which will give riders a sense of gliding freely through water rather than just rotating in a circle.
SeaGlass is designed to recall the original New York Aquarium, which opened in Battery Park's Castle Clinton in 1896 and drew millions of visitors before closing in 1941.
The Battery Conservancy is working with the aquarium, now based in Coney Island, to develop educational materials about the fish and the harbor, to enhance the experience for school groups.
But SeaGlass will also be open into the evening, and Price hopes adults will give it a spin as well.
SeaGlass is just one piece of a major redevelopment of Battery Park that is entering its final stages this year. By the end of 2012, 97 percent of the 25-acre park will either be under construction or will have been completed.
Other plans include a new bikeway around the park's perimeter and a Frank Gehry-designed playground.
