This is the real answer. They built EPCOT faster because they had to. When EPCOT Center was being built P&R was carrying TWDC. The studio side of the business wasn't exactly booming and there was no ABC/ESPN yet. They had to borrow money and invest an incredible amount of capital to build EPCOT plus beg/borrow/steal from corporate sponsors. They needed that money to start generating cash flows ASAP or the company could have been in real trouble.
Flash forward to today and there is so much more to the business. They have no problem laying out millions and even billions of dollars that won't start generating profits for years. It's a blessing and a curse. They also have a much bigger family to feed. There are a bunch of international parks, multiple movie studios, DCL and even DVC. The bottom line is Disney doesn't need to work at full speed on these projects and spreading out the work allows them to manage their capital spend and balance sheet and probably save some money on construction costs. Working 24hrs a day full speed ultimately would cost more.
Absolutely LOVE this post
@GoofGoof! Stated eloquently and levelheadedly as the majority of your posts always are.
What I have found on these forums, and the world in general, is that people are going to find something to complain about. I never engage these individuals as it is a pointless debate. I have seen people complain about the color of the railings on the faux elevated line in DS. I have seen complaints that TDO is a cheap company because the new act in UK doesn't have uniforms (are you kidding me??). Are they entitled to their opinions? Absolutely. Do I think some of their opinions are ridiculous? Absolutely. I simply choose not to entertain their particular egos in these matters of minutiae. At times it seems (to me anyway) that people desperately look for something to complain about.
The problem with this particular subject - project timelines - is that there is a different, and more aggressive business model being used up the highway. And of course it is used as an example time and time again on these forums that TDO is too slow, blah blah. Again, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But I agree with the point that both you and
@BrianLo (also a great post) are making. The actual timeline of this project is not much different than other projects that TDO has completed. Also, the EPCOT comparison is interesting because it was a massive project not quite completed in 3 years. Now there may have been other things Disney was working on at the time EPCOT was being built, but I bet most of their resources in Florida were focused on the EPCOT project.
Right now at this time, besides Pandora, there are also the following: night safaris, RoL, FlameTree refurb, Harambe expansion (again), DAK Outfitters expansion, new TS at Pizzafari, new Tamarin exhibit, refurbs to the Pangani Jungle Trail, ToL refurb, Bug's Life refurb, ToL garden refurb, massive DS transformation, the MK hub, major BC refurb, major refurb and DVC addition at the Poly, refurbs around WL pool area, MM+, monorail and Frozen in Norway (queue angry mobs). I could have also included DVC at GF, new busses, a new bus load/unload at MK, a second dock at the TTC, major BW refurb, 7DMT, Spice Road Table, and so on. Additionally, entering 2015, the huge DHS transformation is set to start. There are other things I have probably missed.
To compare WDW to UNI, or to WDW of the EPCOT era, is a tough comparison to make and one that I don't find appropriate. Modern WDW is a massive resort that is a part of a huge worldwide entertainment conglomerate. I feel that they have to approach construction differently. For a present day comparison, UNI is very good at targeting one or two projects at a time and aggressively tackling them. They seem to have written the book on that approach and are excellent at it. But IMHO they can be because they are in a place currently that reminds me of where TDO was when EPCOT was being built. To me, WDW of today is in a constant state of executing multiple projects, from small to massive, as the WDW empire is too large to focus on only one or a few projects at a time. To me, it makes sense from a business perspective and from a P&R perspective to proceed how they do at the current time. It also makes sense how UNI (and WDW of the past) approaches expansion projects, simply because they are in a different place than WDW is currently.
) is that because of the technology at our fingertips, and instant gratification we all want to know everything, and we all want results now! So Disney is in an interesting situation. WE want to know what's coming the moment something is closed, but the. We have no patience to allow for demolition, structural construction, infastructure, and finishing work. If we want Disney quality attractions & finishes then we need to allow them time to work. The same process had been done for many years, in fact WDI is pressured to move faster today then in the old days, but we the consumer have REALLY changed.
