Major Changes Planned for Downtown Disney Orlando

When Downtown Disney closed Pleasure Island is was unofficially acknowledged to be a combination of factors including increased competition from CityWalk at Universal Orlando and the fact that the new ticketless version of Pleasure Island was attracting a lot of people who just hung out and didn't spend much money. Yeah, they were making money, but they thought a new model could make them much more.

So they developed a plan to turn Pleasure Island into a new dining and outside entertainment district focused on some nationally known brands to act as anchor tenants. That plan turns out to have been dead on arrival due to a downward spiraling economy and the inability to get any major players to sign a contract. So they changed focus slightly to a more garden-esque feel that we've known as Hyperion Wharf. That too has been dismissed for reasons similar to the above. In the meantime Pleasure Island's once popular establishments have sat idle and much missed by fans. So what's next?

Turns out what's next may be the biggest expansion of Downtown Disney ever.

Disney has two problems right now. Downtown Disney is busier than ever, so they need to add capacity. Additionally, guests are leaving Disney property (three words Disney does not like to hear as it means your money is going in someone else's wallet) to go get their night time entertainment on or they're just retiring early to their rooms. To Disney that adds up to untapped revenue. They way to get that revenue is to build a brand new entertainment district at Downtown Disney with plans to ultimately double the size of Pleasure Island and the Westside.

In short, Disney has decided the best way to compete with CityWalk is to really compete with CityWalk.

A feasibility study is well underway looking at a plan similar to the one I've highlighted below. It's assembled from a few sources, so I may not have all the details correct, but the general thrust is true.

The basic plan is to build new parking garages along the I-4 and then add either a two-level entertainment district or more garages with an entertainment district above them on the other side of Buena Vista Drive. If they can get the State DOT to play along there would even be an off ramp from the I-4 right into the parking garages (yeah, Disney Imagineers dream of this all the time, but I've never seen it approved yet. There is always a street exit too.)

It looks like there are also plans to add more theater and concert hall venues down at the end of Westside beyond where Cirque Du Soliel is now. It's not clear if this is part of the major expansion or something on a separate track.

It sounds to me like this plan is fairly developed with Disney haven't already reached out the the state to see what it would need to get the off-ramp built. The question for me is, would this satisfy the real needs of the Walt Disney World resort? What do you think?

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A Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow

One of the key observations that has been made about the new Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom interactive game is that every land except Tomorrowland has a tie-in to the game. This has led many to speculate that Disney does not want to spend to add SotMK elements only to have to remove them for a giant upgrade to the land that may be in the planning stages right now.

The new Disney parks leadership (aka Tom Staggs) and Walt Disney Imagineering agree that Tomorrowland at both the Magic Kingdom and at Disneyland is in great need of help. Cars land opens in June at DCA and New Fantasyland opens in November at the MK. This is fortuitous for the prospects for a new Tomorrowland. If the crowds and spending come to DCA and New Fantasyland as predicted, WDI will get the greenlight to move ahead with plans to update Tomorrowland in both parks.

Historically, Disney management has been much more likely to green light an attraction if it can be duplicated and used in multiple parks. They now believe they can get two Tomorrowlands for the price of one (so to speak). Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom would get clones of a new E-Ticket, clones of a C or D ticket,  and updates to theming that will be nearly identical at both parks.

Everything would be tied up around space travel and a very futuristic vision of far off places and new creatures. The C or D ticket is tentatively scheduled to be a WALL-E based next-generation omnimover (a more varied range of motion for the cars and onboard screens to interact with). The E-Ticket you've probably already heard of.

It will be more than just a single ride, but rather a whole pavilion. Everyone knows that Avatarland has been put on hold at Disney's Animal Kingdom. The reason might be because Imagineering has long held an interest in graphing an alien world onto Tomorrowland and the Avatar movies might provide the perfect vehicle. It also lets Disney have a working concept that won't see the park needing to re-invent the land every 15 years again.

That's all I have for today. Looks like we could be in for a very interested next 5 years.

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Wither Avatarland?

Heard an interesting rumor from two sources today. Apparently cooler heads are prevailing at Walt Disney Parks & Resorts and the idea of building a themed area dedicated to the worlds created by James Cameron in his Avatar movies at Disney's Animal Kingdom is getting a second look.

The biggest plot of land available at Disney's Animal Kingdom was at one time designated to be built as a new land with animals and culture from Australasia region. The park already has a few animals that fit that mold, but they aren't getting much traffic due to their off the path locations. Plus it would allow them to tie in the popular Finding Nemo movie along with other aquatic beasts, something very much missing from DAK at the moment.

The plans for Australia were pretty much in place before Tom Staggs had his ah-ha moment while walking through DCA. But Staggs had only recently moved into his position above Walt Disney Parks & Resorts and wasn't 100% familiar with the vision and goals of Disney's Animal Kingdom. Staggs only new that the park needs some help with keeping guests attention a full day and that Disney World was getting their pants handed to them by the Boy Wizard up the street. So a giant movie property like Avatar was available and Staggs smartly snagged the themepark rights to it.

However, that's not to say Avatar is a perfect fit for Disney's Animal Kingdom. That seems to be the growing consensus and word is that Avatar could be put on indefinite hold for DAK, perhaps popping up instead for the first time in Shanghai or as a stand alone Location Based Entertainment property in Hawaii near Aulani. The first sign of this would be a move to start construction on Australia at Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Stay tuned. This could get interesting.

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When Guests Attack

An unfortunate incident at California Adventure was caught on someone's mobile phone. I am curious to know if proper procedure was followed here. Either way, it's always a bad sign when guests attack. We join in mid-action. A belligerent man, who looks like he could be drunk, is being restrained by three cast members -- two Tower of Terror cast members and a Disney security guard. The man takes a swing at a Disneyland Resort security guard and ends up on the ground. The security guard then pepper sprays the guest. From there it gets more interesting. What would you have done if you were standing there?

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