Main Street U.S.A. hub redevelopment at the Magic Kingdom

[jt04]

For what it's worth, my husband took a photo tonight of the hub from nearly the same location that a photo was taken in a book he has titled the Gardens of the Walt Disney World Resort published in 1988. So, due to viewing a 20 minute firework show that can be seen from several areas of the park and watching a 20 minute movie projected on a building, the hub had to be transformed from a Park-like setting to what it is now...was it really worth it? Wouldn't most like to enjoy a Park for the majority of the day?

This was from today:
View attachment 98747

And this, which is much more beautiful IMHO, was from 1988 (sorry about the book seam):

View attachment 98748
Oh so sad

See Legoland.

 

[Mawg]

The trees were never big enough to obscure the view of the fireworks. They're shot off far north behind Magic Kingdom, their initial takeoff is already obstructed by all the wild trees, New Fantasyland and Cinderella's Castle. The trees weren't even able to obstruct the view more than it already was, the castle itself is far taller than the trees ever became, the rockets still have to clear the top of the spires to see them. They go off in the sky, not just a few dozen feet off the ground...

And the new spires along the side of the castle currently being built look even taller than the trees ever were.

The only thing the trees would have obscured is the projection show (something that wasn't introduced for many years after the trees were removed). And I don't consider the show to be a suitable replacement for the loss of the trees. A 10 minute projection show doesn't compensate for the remaining 99% the day/night being uglier it used to be (pre-2004).

I agree with you, unfortunately what you replied to was not referring to the hub but the new layout of these forums. But you make very good points about the hub!

 

[Mawg]

For what it's worth, my husband took a photo tonight of the hub from nearly the same location that a photo was taken in a book he has titled the Gardens of the Walt Disney World Resort published in 1988. So, due to viewing a 20 minute firework show that can be seen from several areas of the park and watching a 20 minute movie projected on a building, the hub had to be transformed from a Park-like setting to what it is now...was it really worth it? Wouldn't most like to enjoy a Park for the majority of the day?

This was from today:
View attachment 98747

And this, which is much more beautiful IMHO, was from 1988 (sorry about the book seam):

View attachment 98748
Oh so sad

They took all the trees
Put 'em in a tree museum
And they charged the people
Over $100 just to see 'em

They paved paradise and put up a concrete Hub.

 

[ToTBellHop]

They took all the trees
Put 'em in a tree museum
And they charged the people
Over $100 just to see 'em

They paved paradise and put up a concrete Hub.

Which park is the tree museum? DAK?

 

[DisneyJayL]

Wow, seemingly a lot has changed since I was there in March. Can't wait to see the finished product.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

I agree with you, unfortunately what you replied to was not referring to the hub but the new layout of these forums. But you make very good points about the hub!

LOL! Sorry, I thought you meant the hub when you said forum, like a physical gathering place given the context of the thread.

 

[Jlasoon]

While I agree that your book photo is 100x more lovely than the photo taken today; and I have zero interest in the castle projection show; and I have watched fireworks from everywhere in the park EXCEPT the hub - the truth of the matter is that 1988's hub cannot safely accomodate 2015's crowds. Period.

See this is what bothers me. The hub could easily accommodate 2015 crowds. Just make going to the MK a premium event. DCL charges how much to get on a cruise ship for 3 days? Compare that to any other cruise line. And I would argue that the DCL experience destroys anything the parks have to offer right now, why? Crowd/'Idiocracy' control. I'm not seeing too many Brazilian tour groups destroying the ships or... I'll leave it at that you can fill in the rest.

Why is alcohol included for Club Level guests? And why aren't they dispensing it freely at the All Star Resorts? Everyone wants that perfect experience, but no one is willing to pay for it. Unfortunately cheap credit is flooding the world and half the people in the parks can't afford to be there anyways. But have no fear 'Amex' is here with 28% APR.

A great example would be Discovery Cove. Cap MK attendance at 20,000 a day, and charge $500. But that's not fair right?

 

[Andrew C]

See this is what bothers me. The hub could easily accommodate 2015 crowds. Just make going to the MK a premium event. DCL charges how much to get on a cruise ship for 3 days? Compare that to any other cruise line. And I would argue that the DCL experience destroys anything the parks have to offer right now, why? Crowd/'Idiocracy' control. I'm not seeing too many Brazilian tour groups destroying the ships or... I'll leave it at that.

Why is alcohol included for Club Level guests? And why aren't they dispensing it freely at the All Star Resorts? Everyone wants that perfect experience, but no one is willing to pay for it. Unfortunately cheap credit is flooding the world and half the people in the parks can't afford to be there anyways. But have no fear 'Amex' is here with 28% APR.

A great example would be Discovery Cove. Cap MK attendance at 20,000 a day, and charge $500. But that's not fair right?

 

[Goofywilliam]

I wonder if the current group of imagineers understand that we're not supposed to be able to see the Tomorrowland buildings from the hub.

Hopefully they allow the trees on the outer ring to grow to become a sightline barrier of sorts. However, I doubt they will ever allow the trees in the center of the hub to get much size on them.

 

[Sage of Time]

See this is what bothers me. The hub could easily accommodate 2015 crowds. Just make going to the MK a premium event. DCL charges how much to get on a cruise ship for 3 days? Compare that to any other cruise line. And I would argue that the DCL experience destroys anything the parks have to offer right now, why? Crowd/'Idiocracy' control. I'm not seeing too many Brazilian tour groups destroying the ships or... I'll leave it at that you can fill in the rest.

Why is alcohol included for Club Level guests? And why aren't they dispensing it freely at the All Star Resorts? Everyone wants that perfect experience, but no one is willing to pay for it. Unfortunately cheap credit is flooding the world and half the people in the parks can't afford to be there anyways. But have no fear 'Amex' is here with 28% APR.

A great example would be Discovery Cove. Cap MK attendance at 20,000 a day, and charge $500. But that's not fair right?

Not when Disney (was? It's certainly waning) is a bastion of the middle class american vacation.

 

[Jlasoon]

Not when Disney (was? It's certainly waning) is a bastion of the middle class american vacation.

Very understandable.

 

[JenniferS]

Make that double for me.

 

[Red Sox]

Only if they plant some trees and it will take years to get back to this! Right now, they seem to be more like large shrub like plants. Not anything that would become as majestic.

Oh I realize these bushes will never grow to look like the '88 picture. I'm just hoping that someday, somehow the future folks in charge (clearly not the current regime) will re-imagine the hub to be like the hub of old and undo the city bus stop look and put some real trees back in.

 

[G00fyDad]

Oh I realize these bushes will never grow to look like the '88 picture. I'm just hoping that someday, somehow the future folks in charge (clearly not the current regime) will re-imagine the hub to be like the hub of old and undo the city bus stop look and put some real trees back in.

Me too. Unfortunately the fireworks and castle projection show really pack people in. More people equals more money. At the end of the day that's what every decision they make has to result in. More money. If the parks operated the way everyone truly wanted them to operate and did everything that the people really wanted them to do they would have shut down long ago.

 

[Sonconato]

Oh I realize these bushes will never grow to look like the '88 picture. I'm just hoping that someday, somehow the future folks in charge (clearly not the current regime) will re-imagine the hub to be like the hub of old and undo the city bus stop look and put some real trees back in.

I hope so too! The way I see it is that it needs to be made clear that the fireworks can be seen in many locations of the park, not just Main Street. As for the castle projection show, perhaps it would have been better to draw crowds to Epcot and project on Spaceship Earth. Nix the MK show and put the park back. On a related subject, if the removal of the trees is to pack people in, then why did they cut down the mature trees in front of the TTC shop and replace them with trees no taller than a basketball goal...it's not for crowds. I'd like to think it was for a very good reason but I can't think of any. That gift shop is much, much hotter now, let alone the walk to get there. Oh...and go Red Sox!

 

[Lucky]

See this is what bothers me. The hub could easily accommodate 2015 crowds. Just make going to the MK a premium event. DCL charges how much to get on a cruise ship for 3 days? Compare that to any other cruise line. And I would argue that the DCL experience destroys anything the parks have to offer right now, why? Crowd/'Idiocracy' control. I'm not seeing too many Brazilian tour groups destroying the ships or... I'll leave it at that you can fill in the rest.

Why is alcohol included for Club Level guests? And why aren't they dispensing it freely at the All Star Resorts? Everyone wants that perfect experience, but no one is willing to pay for it. Unfortunately cheap credit is flooding the world and half the people in the parks can't afford to be there anyways. But have no fear 'Amex' is here with 28% APR.

A great example would be Discovery Cove. Cap MK attendance at 20,000 a day, and charge $500. But that's not fair right?

Yeah, middle class people are so uncouth. Why can't they behave more like rich people.

 

[Next Big Thing]

For what it's worth, my husband took a photo tonight of the hub from nearly the same location that a photo was taken in a book he has titled the Gardens of the Walt Disney World Resort published in 1988. So, due to viewing a 20 minute firework show that can be seen from several areas of the park and watching a 20 minute movie projected on a building, the hub had to be transformed from a Park-like setting to what it is now...was it really worth it? Wouldn't most like to enjoy a Park for the majority of the day?

This was from today:
View attachment 98747

And this, which is much more beautiful IMHO, was from 1988 (sorry about the book seam):

View attachment 98748
Oh so sad

You would never believe it's the same place...

 

[Sage of Time]

It's a totally different park, for better or worse.

You would never believe it's the same place...

 

[TomHendricks]

I hope so too! The way I see it is that it needs to be made clear that the fireworks can be seen in many locations of the park, not just Main Street. As for the castle projection show, perhaps it would have been better to draw crowds to Epcot and project on Spaceship Earth. Nix the MK show and put the park back. On a related subject, if the removal of the trees is to pack people in, then why did they cut down the mature trees in front of the TTC shop and replace them with trees no taller than a basketball goal...it's not for crowds. I'd like to think it was for a very good reason but I can't think of any. That gift shop is much, much hotter now, let alone the walk to get there. Oh...and go Red Sox!
View attachment 98767

Where do you want them to go? They are already in last place, they can't go back any further.

 

[Sonconato]

Where do you want them to go? They are already in last place, they can't go back any further.

Keeping the old New York vs. Red Sox alive are we? Shall we talk steroids? I will admit it's a bad season but I have endured many a losing season and still love them...kind of like the status of WDW right now. Hope springs eternal.