One thing being overlooked here, in my opinion, is that new additions are supposed to compensate for years of underinvestment. While I am not against investment in new infrastructure (whether they be rides, theater shows, parades, fireworks, etc.), there is quite a bit more that has to be done before Disney could ever be at the caliber it was say, ten years ago. And much more for even before then. Objectively speaking, Disney has hacked away at the guest experience over the past twenty years. Live entertainment has been cut, maintenance budgets have been slashed and staff outsourced (with an apparent decline in quality), merchandise has been homogenized, transportation is a mess as much as ever, and various "magic touches" across the resort have been deactivated or removed. And these are only things that would be obvious (or one would hope) to a regular visitor, nevermind the way Disney treats (or trains) its cast members or any number of back of house cutbacks. For the sake of this post, let's also overlook the fact that the resort has neglected to significantly invest in new attractions or improvements since essentially 2006 with Expedition Everest (there have been investments here and there, for example Toy Story Mania's development was supposedly split with Disneyland's, the new World Showcase restaurants were primarily financed by third-party vendors, etc.).
The problems at WDW (and throughout P&R) are manifest at every level of the company, from Imagineering to the executive suite to the CP'ers and everywhere in between. In a microcosm, WDW's problems wouldn't be solved by building Radiator Springs Racers in MGM or Indy in Adventureland. The company has to change the way it sees itself, its vision (if there is any) for the parks, and how they are to be run. There have been promising, if tiny, improvements. These range from the tiki torches above the Sunshine Tree Terrace to the geysers that are now working at Big Thunder Mountain, or the new Fantasyland/Liberty Square thoroughfare, or the Fantasyland beautification/expansion project. All of these projects received capital for things that could be considered extraneous and don't provide a return on investment. But alas, they are happening.
But such restorations are only the tip of the iceberg. Flowerbeds that are currently filled with low-maintenance green leafy plants should be returned to their manicured beauty for which Disney is so famous. Topiaries should be around all of the time rather than during just Flower and Garden Festival. Fountains and water features once long dry should be flowing with water once more. The parks should have their equity entertainment restored, from the Liberty Square Fife and Drum Corps to the Four for a Dollar pre-show at the Beauty and the Beast show at MGM. The current maintenance operations should be returned to how they were previously, when crews had a larger ability to fix bad show. Furthermore, positions such as animatronic technicians that disappeared as workers retired should no longer be vacant. Dining portions should be increased and less homogenized. Amenities at hotels that had been chipped away should also come back. Park hours should be extended. I don't think that any of these suggestions would be disagreed upon by anyone in the fan community. But these are all aspects of what made WDW so great that have disappeared in the recent future.
There is no reason why WDW should not be a world-class vacation destination. It was, at one point, and still is, to an extent. But so long as what make (and made) the parks so great is hacked away until there is just meat and potatoes, people will go elsewhere. And they are. Millions are flocking to the Universal resorts for their new (and groundbreaking) offerings. My family went on a NCL cruise to Bermuda this year, and will be out in California next year for the coast and Disneyland. By 2015, we wouldn't have been at the parks in three years, which for a family like us that has gone to WDW semi-annually since 2004 is a huge amount of time! But as WDW keeps cutting away and other places keep adding more, the argument to come back to the Resort proves harder to make.
WDW needs to up their game. This is realized (finally) by the upper echelons of park management and corporate. But an E-ticket here and there won't do the trick. WDW needs to restore what it has been cutting back in addition to new offerings, and then and only then will we have truly great parks once more.
