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

[Jose]

No, honestly. I'm very willing to give them the benefit of the doubt here. The schedules ran behind, or a supplier goofed up, and the fences and railings weren't going to be done by the 24 Hour Party. So they went with a temporary plan to open these areas for that insanely busy day and just let the guests walk on the grass without fences for awhile.

In the next week or two after the holiday weekend, they'll go back and install fences and restore the damaged grass to the permanent gardens and manicured lawns. Seriously, that could be what's happening here. They just can't be that stupid to not have fences. They just can't.

I'm with you on that. Think about the plans they have to restore the hub. Two fountains and topiary at both sides!

 

[unkadug]

No, honestly. I'm very willing to give them the benefit of the doubt here. The schedules ran behind, or a supplier goofed up, and the fences and railings weren't going to be done by the 24 Hour Party. So they went with a temporary plan to open these areas for that insanely busy day and just let the guests walk on the grass without fences for awhile.

In the next week or two after the holiday weekend, they'll go back and install fences and restore the damaged grass to the permanent gardens and manicured lawns. Seriously, that could be what's happening here. They just can't be that stupid to not have fences. They just can't.

Who are you trying to convince, me or you?

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Oy. That shot of people sprawled out in the grass is just ridiculous. I don't blame them, though, given the lack of benches and the state of the hub right now.

I beginning to wonder if TDO (apart from being cheap on landscaping) is trying to encourage people to use grass areas for sitting by removing railings and fences. That area used to have fences to keep people on the walkways, but after the recent "refurb" of the area they were gone.

Before shot of the area (note the fences and gardens compared to the grass of today):

Post refurb:

Wow, I'm speechless.

People compared to DL earlier. Me, for the first time in my life I was beginning to feel at DLP this week that their MK is superior. It occured to me that all of the financial woes and penny-pinching at Paris has had one tremendous effect, especially over time: the park is still pretty much the same as it was in Disney's heydays. Then add that currently DLP is really trying, and you suddenly have a pretty decent castle park indeed.

Here is the view of roughly the same spot in DLP. Trees everywhere. Flowerbeds too. Festive Aristocats and Dalmatian topiaries behind you in the center of the hub. And a lovely springtime show playing all day long.
And to think that with their super-high tech Dreams fireworks-waterfountain-castle projection show they need their hub for viewing spots too!

 

[RivieraJenn]

Not to mention that people with proper upbringing don't sit on the ground in public, especially ladies.

And it's not just that sitting on the ground is improper and lower-class, but any human body over the age of 23 looks very unattractive when plopped on the ground. Especially women, who instantly gain 25 pounds and several extra lumps and bumps when they try and sit on the ground. See the photos attached to this thread for evidence of that.

Seriously? This is absurd. I'm not saying that WDW's decision to remove seating from the parks is appropriate (I find it ridiculous and unnecessary), but to say sitting on the ground in ANY situation is improper and low-class? I take it you've never been on a picnic, a popular pastime even among the well-bred, corseted ladies of the 19th and early 20th centuries? Or to the beach? Or to any city park, for that matter? People sit on the ground; there's nothing wrong with it. I would generally avoid it at WDW, but when people are hot, tired and left without other alternatives for a resting spot, it is going to happen.

 

[GymLeaderPhil]

The grass has been there for awhile now. Pretty sure it's been nearly a month.

 

[sshindel]

Seriously? This is absurd. I'm not saying that WDW's decision to remove seating from the parks is appropriate (I find it ridiculous and unnecessary), but to say sitting on the ground in ANY situation is improper and low-class? I take it you've never been on a picnic, a popular pastime even among the well-bred, corseted ladies of the 19th and early 20th centuries? Or to the beach? Or to any city park, for that matter? People sit on the ground; there's nothing wrong with it. I would generally avoid it at WDW, but when people are hot, tired and left without other alternatives for a resting spot, it is going to happen.

 

[Rob562]

While I agree this grass and lack-of-fence situation is temporary, I'm presuming it'll be for the length of the Hub construction project, not the holiday weekend...

I peg any design or construction decision in the immediate area of the Hub to be inter-connected with that project and won't judge too harshly until it's done. It's possible that the grassy areas will be re-designed as the project moves forward and the adjacent new walkway across the waterway to the Hub opens.

Edit: Also, the overlay on Page 6 of this thread showing the outline defining the scope of this project includes the entire area in front of the restrooms and First Aid. I'm sure there will be something else happening here eventually.

-Rob

 

[RivieraJenn]

Yes, Seurat immediately comes to mind, among others. Oh, the horror!

 

[Horizons1]

No, honestly. I'm very willing to give them the benefit of the doubt here. The schedules ran behind, or a supplier goofed up, and the fences and railings weren't going to be done by the 24 Hour Party. So they went with a temporary plan to open these areas for that insanely busy day and just let the guests walk on the grass without fences for awhile.

In the next week or two after the holiday weekend, they'll go back and install fences and restore the damaged grass to the permanent gardens and manicured lawns. Seriously, that could be what's happening here. They just can't be that stupid to not have fences. They just can't.

Sorry to break it to you, but this has been like this for a while. The area has been fence less and flower less since the end of the Casey's refurbishment. I remember several members of this site saying that all this was for the better, and that area looked great. You people still think that?

I fear that this area is complete in TDO's eyes.

 

[TP2000]

Seriously? This is absurd. I'm not saying that WDW's decision to remove seating from the parks is appropriate (I find it ridiculous and unnecessary), but to say sitting on the ground in ANY situation is improper and low-class? I take it you've never been on a picnic, a popular pastime even among the well-bred, corseted ladies of the 19th and early 20th centuries? Or to the beach? Or to any city park, for that matter?

There are certainly social situations that warrant sitting on the ground, and someone who has good posture can do it correctly in the right situation. But in public spaces like malls, airports, or city streets it never looks good. Never. Homeless people sit on the ground, but most normal people should be on a bench or at a patio table at a café or business. Especially people over the age of about 22 or 23. The body changes, and it never looks good plopped on the ground with tummies and thighs and legs askew.

Disney theme parks need more benches for adults, not less. When you've got people sitting on the ground in desperation like the photos earlier in this thread, something is very wrong.

 

[RivieraJenn]

Disney theme parks need more benches for adults, not less. When you've got people sitting on the ground in desperation like the photos earlier in this thread, something is very wrong.

I agree with this much.

 

[TP2000]

I fear that this area is complete in TDO's eyes.

Yikes.

Then I fear that TDO will need to go back and re-learn 59 years of theme park operation again. They'll need to spend some money on fences and proper landscaping for this area. In it's current format they've made a giant mistake, and one that Walt Disney and his team learned in Anaheim by about 1957 or '58 after a few years of running Disneyland with open planters like this...

 

[danv3]

Disney theme parks need more benches for adults, not less. When you've got people sitting on the ground in desperation like the photos earlier in this thread, something is very wrong.

+1

 

[jt04]

Yikes.

Then I fear that TDO will need to go back and re-learn 59 years of theme park operation again. They'll need to spend some money on fences and proper landscaping for this area. In it's current format they've made a giant mistake, and one that Walt Disney and his team learned in Anaheim by about 1957 or '58 after a few years of running Disneyland with open planters like this...

It will be fun to compare this to the final product at WDW.

 

[unkadug]

There are certainly social situations that warrant sitting on the ground, and someone who has good posture can do it correctly in the right situation. But in public spaces like malls, airports, or city streets it never looks good. Never. Homeless people sit on the ground, but most normal people should be on a bench or at a patio table at a café or business. Especially people over the age of about 22 or 23. The body changes, and it never looks good plopped on the ground with tummies and thighs and legs askew.

Disney theme parks need more benches for adults, not less. When you've got people sitting on the ground in desperation like the photos earlier in this thread, something is very wrong.

I'm still trying to find these pictures of people sitting all over the ground.

 

[TP2000]

This is way better than flower beds, right?
View attachment 54678

@unkadug These were the photos from this weekend with folks sitting on the grass.

 

[Cesar R M]

Did they ever consider constructing a viewing terrace on the rooftops of Main Street? This is getting out of hand.

I was thinking the same, at least on one side, so Tink can still do her scene.
They could hide most equipment with faux wood-ads of the main street timeline. and even add a FP+ dinner+fireworks set up on the top of one.

 

[Cesar R M]

Well it gets better. You can't tell in that photo, but most of that grass is dead.

the question for me is... was the green already dead? or they did remove the flowers, then replanted the green?
because if that's true.. the green will always turns semi brown before finally settling in (specially with the heat and not much fresh water)

 

[TP2000]

It will be fun to compare this to the final product at WDW.

I'm sure they aren't going for a circa 1955 look to the Hub at Magic Kingdom. By the early 1960's the Disneyland Hub planters were fenced in and formalized, but Walt's team had to learn that the hard way in 1955-58.

And certainly this experiment with circa 1955 fenceless lawns won't last through the summer at WDW. The grass is already trampled and dead, and it's only Memorial Day.

 

[note2001]

So I need to know, how many grown little boys out there saw @Horizons1's photo:

with all that dirt and some equipment and thought to themselves: "Man, there's no better place for a sandbox than smack dab in the middle of the Magic Kingdom. I want to play!"

Come on guys... fess up.