Disney buys 15 acres at National Harbor

[WDWFanatic]

I just found out that disney has bought 15 acres at the National Harbor in Maryland. This is the big entertainment project near the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. It will be a 500 Room resort. I live about 25 mins from the site and the National Harbor has so far fallen flat on what it was supposed to attract. The place is a ghost town. Guess we will see what happens.


By Thomas Heath
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Walt Disney Co. has bought a 15-acre parcel at Prince George's County's sprawling National Harbor development, a shot in the arm for a project that opened with big ambitions a year ago, only to run headfirst into one of the sharpest economic declines in decades.

Disney plans to build a 500-room hotel resort on the parcel, providing another anchor for a 300-acre venture that seeks to rival the District as a conference and convention destination. National Harbor already includes six hotels; more than a dozen restaurants; and a giant conference center run by Gaylord Entertainment, owner of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

Business, though, has been slowed by the recession, and many of the 400 residences at National Harbor have not been sold. A Disney spokesman said the company will almost certainly go ahead with the project despite the economic climate, but the company did not provide a timetable.

"The addition of Disney as a partner to the National Harbor mix validates and fulfills the shared vision that we will be a world-class waterfront destination resort," said Milton V. Peterson, chairman of Peterson Cos., who has staked hundreds of millions of dollars on the harbor venture. "It's an extraordinary compliment in this economy."

Disney's move to Prince George's comes more than a decade after the company pulled out of a project to build a history-themed park, called Disney's America, on 3,000 acres of rolling farmland near the Manassas battlefield. Disney scrapped the project after months of opposition from politicians and citizens' groups

Peterson has been wooing Disney in the years since then. He even hosted Walt Disney president and chief executive Robert A. Iger on a visit to the site.

"I have been working on this Disney project with Milt for four years," said Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D). "Milt has been working on it for 10. There were times when it looked like it wouldn't happen, but the perseverance paid off."

Tourism brings nearly $10 billion annually to the Washington region, though summer convention bookings and hotel reservations in the District are off about 5 percent from last year. District tourism officials projected a 2 percent decline in tourism this year.

With its thousands of hotel rooms and huge public spaces, National Harbor has been a subject of speculation on whether it complements or cannibalizes the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and other conference centers in downtown Washington. Plans for a large new hotel at the convention center, considered a requisite for boosting business there, remain on the drawing board.

But, eight miles south of the District on the Potomac River, National Harbor has been a relatively bright spot, one of the few projects to go forward. It is anchored by the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, which spots an 18-story glass hall, 2,000 hotel rooms and 470,000 square feet of meeting space, making it the largest center of its kind on the East Coast.

One hospitality source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the source is not an official spokesman, said about 60 percent of the convention business at the Gaylord center has been new to the region. The rest is groups that had previously booked events in Washington.


"Yeah, sure, we're in a downturn right now," said Colin Reed, chairman and chief executive of Gaylord Entertainment. "But three years from now, life will be a lot different."

Although Disney is best known for its animated films and theme parks, the entertainment conglomerate also includes ABC, ESPN, live-action films and cruise ships.

Disney's resorts unit is buying the National Harbor parcel for $11 million. The company also has an 800-plus room resort under construction on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. That resort is due to open in 2011; will cost about $800 million; and will include a spa, saltwater snorkeling, a replica volcano and wedding facilities, according to reports.

Disney would not disclose the exact size and construction date for its National Harbor plan, "but it will be a project of significant scale and put a recognizable Disney footprint in the Washington area," said Jay Rasulo, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Rasulo added that the project is not an attempt to build another Disney's America.

"The National Harbor resort is a completely different kind of project," Rasulo said. "It's specifically zoned for hotel, residential and other commercial development. This project is a hotel resort. It is not by any stretch of the imagination a theme-park project and never will be. We have no intention of building a large-scale theme park in the Washington area."

The new project might dovetail with Adventures by Disney, which offers guided tours that include a mid-Atlantic tour through Philadelphia, Williamsburg and Washington. The D.C. leg of the tour includes a guided bike ride around the National Mall and private tours of the Lincoln Memorial, the White House and Arlington National Cemetery, and a lunch trip to Mount Vernon.

"This is what we think about as a fun-filled new destination for local visitors, which can also serve as a base camp from which others can explore the increasingly inspirational stories from our nation's capital," Rasulo said.

The property Disney has bought sits on a rise at the top of a tree-lined promenade named American Way, which is fashioned after the main street in Barcelona, called Las Ramblas. The Disney site overlooks the National Harbor complex and the Potomac and faces north toward the District. Visitors can see the Washington Monument in the distance.

Rasulo said Disney has to weigh "lots of factors in the coming months and the coming years" before deciding when to break ground.

"We wouldn't be buying this property if we didn't think this was a great location for a Disney resort hotel," Rasulo said.






http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...l?hpid=topnews

[WDWFanatic]

I just saw this was posted in company news so delete if necessary.

[tigsmom]

Originally Posted by WDWFanatic

I just found out that disney has bought 15 acres at the National Harbor in Maryland. This is the big entertainment project near the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. It will be a 500 Room resort. I live about 25 mins from the site and the National Harbor has so far fallen flat on what it was supposed to attract. The place is a ghost town. Guess we will see what happens.

....

Where is this in relationship to the Inner Harbor?

[WDWFanatic]

The inner harbor is in baltimore, which is about an hour from here. The national harbor is on the potomac river closer to washington d.c. (about 10 mins)

[EPCOT Explorer]

Two of my faves, Disney and Washington!

Good move for the DVC...

[foreverbelle]

DVC practically in my backyard and a hope skip and a jump from work..awesome!

[tigsmom]

Originally Posted by WDWFanatic

The inner harbor is in baltimore, which is about an hour from here. The national harbor is on the potomac river closer to washington d.c. (about 10 mins)

Thanks!

[Computer Magic]

The new project might dovetail with Adventures by Disney, which offers guided tours

I see more of this happening in other areas. Makes a lot of sense. AS of using these hotels for a DVC, I will say using DVC points for ABD was not cost effective in 2007. It was a better value to pay. The only exception is if you are about to lost the DVC points...

[goodtimes5286]

imo i dont like disney opening up hotels in random places. Maybe it's because I've personally never heard of that place, or the fact that I would like the money spent in the parks. But we'll see if its profitable.

Would you rather spend 800 million building a hotel where people will give you 200-300 a night, OR build a bunch of attractions/a hotel or 2 and get all the room revenue, the theme park revenue, AND the food revenue.

I just think they need to do too much at WDW to go spending money all willy nilly on hotels all around the U.S.

[Computer Magic]

Originally Posted by goodtimes5286

imo i dont like disney opening up hotels in random places. Maybe it's because I've personally never heard of that place, or the fact that I would like the money spent in the parks. But we'll see if its profitable.

Would you rather spend 800 million building a hotel where people will give you 200-300 a night, OR build a bunch of attractions/a hotel or 2 and get all the room revenue, the theme park revenue, AND the food revenue.

I just think they need to do too much at WDW to go spending money all willy nilly on hotels all around the U.S.

You make a valid point. Disney is considering expanding while letting their cash cow (WDW) for the last 30 years dry up.

[slappy magoo]

Originally Posted by Computer Magic

You make a valid point. Disney is considering expanding while letting their cash cow (WDW) for the last 30 years dry up.

Or you can consider it this way - there are people who trust the Disney brand when it comes to assurances of quality lodging (whether or not that reputation is deserved is a subject for another forum), but those people do not necessarily want to go to WDW every single year. Or at least, they feel like maybe they shouldn't.

In a way, it's comparable to the mall mentality. If you're traveling for pleasure or business or other reasons and you find yourself in an unfamiliar area, lots of people wind up going to the local mall. Same anchor stores, same chain stores, same chain restaurants...it's familiar, it's comforting. Disney can tap into that desire for the familiar by building resorts in other areas across the country (or around the world). Not to mention, the more resorts they own, the more appealing it will be for potential DVC members to know they have more options beyond Florida, not to mention the other Disney parks where the point value is less than ideal (and I include the new Grand Californian Villas in that category, though it's a lovely resort).

Now, the negative to this is that the mall-ification of America makes regions less distinct, and therefore less special. I suspect Disney knows this and will make efforts to make each new resort unique, but they'll still inevitably get crap from people who bemoan Disney's encroachment in local turf making the entire planet into the Bland of the Never-Lost.

[Lucky]

Originally Posted by goodtimes5286

imo i dont like disney opening up hotels in random places. Maybe it's because I've personally never heard of that place, or the fact that I would like the money spent in the parks. But we'll see if its profitable.

Would you rather spend 800 million building a hotel where people will give you 200-300 a night, OR build a bunch of attractions/a hotel or 2 and get all the room revenue, the theme park revenue, AND the food revenue.

I just think they need to do too much at WDW to go spending money all willy nilly on hotels all around the U.S.

Thiose Disney resorts in random places could generate profits that could be used to invest in the parks. They can also expose more people to a bit of Disney and thereby generate more demand for WDW and DL visits.

[Computer Magic]

Originally Posted by slappy magoo

Or you can consider it this way - there are people who trust the Disney brand when it comes to assurances of quality lodging (whether or not that reputation is deserved is a subject for another forum), but those people do not necessarily want to go to WDW every single year. Or at least, they feel like maybe they shouldn't.

Yeah, I fall into both of those catagories. Are/were you a Psych major guilty pleasures

[yankspy]

This could be interesting. There is currently a huge Gaylord hotel at the national harbor now. I actually do a lot of business with the National Harbor so this is exciting. I wonder if "Adventures by Disney" needs historians for their tours?

[WDWFanatic]

This is a brand new area so its slowly being discovered, new businesses are leasing space constantly. Im a commercial agent in the area so Im watching the progression. Ive also dealt with the company building the harbor. They have a great site so you can see what the finished harbor looks like. Think of it as a downtown disney on a larger scale but without that disney touch They will also have water taxis to take you to other d.c. locations.

http://www.nationalharbor.com/