This is the thread to discuss all things about the original Walt Disney E.P.C.O.T. city plan that bears little resemblance to what we know of as EPCOT Center or Epcot today.
Since there have been many people posting on other, unrelated threads, I figured I'd post it here.
Also, here is the "Florida Film" in which Walt was showcasing the concept to TV (though it didn't air on TV until after he passed)
I've studied this project for a long time and I have a lot to say about it.
Do I think it would have worked? If implemented properly, yes. If done exactly as Walt initially envisioned, probably no. There would be some things that would have to be changed in the design, but that's why he surrounded himself with some of the top minds in the industry.
There are several VERY good features created for the EPCOT plan, and no, unlike what others have stated, I definitely do not think this was just a fabricated plan to get extra governance and land rights in Florida. The whole Peoplemover system, while admittedly converted from the Ford pavilion at the 1964 world's fair, was put in as a preview of the kind of system that Walt wanted for EPCOT. Also, for those of us too young to remember, the Carousel of Progress when it was in Disneyland had the final scene within EPCOT and the post show included the full size model of Progress City, which was a modified model of EPCOT that added a lot more car friendly areas from what I can tell, and other amusement offerings. Yes, part of this model is still show on the Peoplemover at MK.
I do think the layout and transportation aspect would have been a good template for future city building, and we're starting to see a similar idea being implemented in other futuristic cities such as Masdar, using personal rapid transport or PRT. PRT could be considered an improved version of the peoplemover.
People also tend to forget that the EPCOT city plan was mostly designed for cast member housing for the theme park(s) and hotels, plus the industrial area where innovative testing of new products was going to take place.
The advantage that Walt would have had, beyond others is that they do have a number of on-site employees who could be housed in this setting. These days, many college and international program cast members also live either on WDW property or just outside of it, in what are basically apartment complexes and they take a bus to get to the parks...not exactly futuristic.
The issues I see with Walt's vision without some changes are:
-Testing of new products in the homes of the residents could lead to a number of possible issues
-Tours of Epcot would mean that a lot of CM's are still "on-stage" even during their leisure and off-work time.
-Companies began to get more secretive about their developments and may not be as willing to share their new products in that environment
That's just the start. I understand where people think it could be a failure, and the timing in U.S. history was also very bad with a lot of social unrest, but I think many of the concepts, especially with transportation and the minimal use of cars and trucks could still be implemented in a newer form of this idea.
Since there have been many people posting on other, unrelated threads, I figured I'd post it here.
Also, here is the "Florida Film" in which Walt was showcasing the concept to TV (though it didn't air on TV until after he passed)
I've studied this project for a long time and I have a lot to say about it.
Do I think it would have worked? If implemented properly, yes. If done exactly as Walt initially envisioned, probably no. There would be some things that would have to be changed in the design, but that's why he surrounded himself with some of the top minds in the industry.
There are several VERY good features created for the EPCOT plan, and no, unlike what others have stated, I definitely do not think this was just a fabricated plan to get extra governance and land rights in Florida. The whole Peoplemover system, while admittedly converted from the Ford pavilion at the 1964 world's fair, was put in as a preview of the kind of system that Walt wanted for EPCOT. Also, for those of us too young to remember, the Carousel of Progress when it was in Disneyland had the final scene within EPCOT and the post show included the full size model of Progress City, which was a modified model of EPCOT that added a lot more car friendly areas from what I can tell, and other amusement offerings. Yes, part of this model is still show on the Peoplemover at MK.
I do think the layout and transportation aspect would have been a good template for future city building, and we're starting to see a similar idea being implemented in other futuristic cities such as Masdar, using personal rapid transport or PRT. PRT could be considered an improved version of the peoplemover.
People also tend to forget that the EPCOT city plan was mostly designed for cast member housing for the theme park(s) and hotels, plus the industrial area where innovative testing of new products was going to take place.
The advantage that Walt would have had, beyond others is that they do have a number of on-site employees who could be housed in this setting. These days, many college and international program cast members also live either on WDW property or just outside of it, in what are basically apartment complexes and they take a bus to get to the parks...not exactly futuristic.
The issues I see with Walt's vision without some changes are:
-Testing of new products in the homes of the residents could lead to a number of possible issues
-Tours of Epcot would mean that a lot of CM's are still "on-stage" even during their leisure and off-work time.
-Companies began to get more secretive about their developments and may not be as willing to share their new products in that environment
That's just the start. I understand where people think it could be a failure, and the timing in U.S. history was also very bad with a lot of social unrest, but I think many of the concepts, especially with transportation and the minimal use of cars and trucks could still be implemented in a newer form of this idea.
