SEATTLE — Crowds cheered as 600 lighted drones created awe-inspiring images in the sky Sunday night during a free 18-minute show above the Seattle Center by the Space Needle. Attendees of the MLB All-Star Experience applauded the baseball-themed visuals and iconic Seattle imagery.
The drones, belonging to Texas-based company Sky Elements, hovered up to 400 feet above the ground, creating formations to the tunes of classic baseball music.
With roughly 150,000 tourists estimated to be in town for MLB All-Star Week, KING 5 caught up with visitors to hear how their experiences have been, despite recent shootings and other concerning trends in the area.
Max Summerville, a boy from Birmingham, Alabama, said he is thrilled his parents chose for them to stay in a hotel in Sodo near the stadiums.
“If we leave the one window open, and somebody hits it out of the stadium, it can come into our room,” said Summerville.
His parents agree it was a good choice.
“The whole scene around the baseball stadium thus far has been awesome,” said Tony Summerville, his dad.
So far, he said they have made it out to several All-Star events, including the celebrity game, where they got to meet Cal Ripken Jr.
His mom, Britney Summerville, said they have been loving Seattle this trip.
“Not had an ounce of, ya know, scary moments," Summerville said. "It's all been super nice. (The) area is completely covered by, ya know, volunteers and police. We'll 100% be back, yeah."
As part of his Downtown Activation Plan, one of Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell's goals has been to bring back more visitors downtown.
One 11-year-old from Southern California said she would love to come back someday.
“We went to the gum wall, and we saw like people throwing fish at each other, and it was so fun,” said Lea Hernandez from California.
Meanwhile, a man visiting from Puerto Rico said he too feels safe and has no concerns.
“Very safe,” Eric Rodriguez said. “We walk for everything."
He watched staff set up for the drone show; something he was excited to see for the first time.
“Would you come back to Seattle based on your experiences in downtown Seattle this week?” we asked him.
“Yes," he said.
More than $50 million in revenue is expected to be generated for Seattle by this All-star Week. Experts predict one long-term impact to be the creation of jobs.
Speaking of the Seattle Center, you can watch two classic baseball films at the Mural Amphitheatre this week for free. “The Sandlot” will be shown Monday night and “A League of Their Own” will be shown on Tuesday. The films will start just after sunset.