News New Haunted Mansion Grounds Expansion, Retail Shop Coming to Disneyland Resort in 2024

[TP2000]

Why is the new gift shop so tall? Is there going to be a planetarium inside? The scale and the mass of this building is so horribly off, that it's comical.

Here's a quick n' dirty overlay of what I think should have been the height and scale of the "Carriage House" structure. Keep the same basic footprint on the ground, but maybe push it back another foot or two on the south side facing the Mansion exit. But knock off at least 30% of the roof height and gable.

Seriously, why the bleep is this building so damn tall?!? Are they really this stupid?

 

[truecoat]

Why is the new gift shop so tall? Is there going to be a planetarium inside? The scale and the mass of this building is so horribly off, that it's comical.

Here's a quick n' dirty overlay of what I think should have been the height and scale of the "Carriage House" structure. Keep the same basic footprint on the ground, but maybe push it back another foot or two on the south side facing the Mansion exit. But knock off at least 30% of the roof height and gable.

Seriously, why the bleep is this building so damn tall?!? Are they really this stupid?

View attachment 829722

It's hard to hang someone from the rafters if it's shorter.

 

[mickEblu]

It's hard to hang someone from the rafters if it's shorter.

Still tall enough for the 7 little people that got deprived once in a lifetime roles because of Peter Dinklage.

 

[TP2000]

Remember in the late 2010's when WDI was publicly bragging about their expensive new virtual reality room called "The Dish" that allowed them to walk through a simulation of new projects to check scale and sightlines and imagery? They talked about this with lifestyle bloggers, at D23 Expo presentation, etc. It was very expensive and custom built in Glendale, but it was supposed to help them build perfect theme parks. Or something.

Apparently the Dish was closed for maintenance when they designed and approved this new Best Buy carriage house for New Orleans Square.

 

[Too Many Hats]

View attachment 829746

The gift shop just decimates the view of Haunted Mansion for guests walking south from Bayou Country/Galaxy’s Edge. Used to be such a cinematic way to approach the Mansion, especially at night. Ugh.

 

[TP2000]

The gift shop just decimates the view of Haunted Mansion for guests walking south from Bayou Country/Galaxy’s Edge. Used to be such a cinematic way to approach the Mansion, especially at night. Ugh.

The scale is just so off, it's really baffling how this ever got approved. Especially today, with all the 3D modeling and computer wizardry that would have obviously showed both WDI and TDA exactly what this building would look like from all approach angles in the park.

The only reason I can think how this happened is.... they just don't give a flying flip any more. Who cares? We need merch sales!

One thing I learned a couple years ago when I bought my new house, is that light fixtures next to doors need to be scaled one-third the size of the door that they flank. Both the builder and the designer I hired said that on multiple occasions, and they're right. Anything smaller than that looks hokey and cheap (see those wall sconces above that are 25% too small). It doesn't help that they also look like generic "Old Timey" garage lights you can buy at Home Depot for $49, but they are sized too small for the prominent doorway they flank. It makes the building look even larger, while cheapening the overall look.

Seriously, someone should go hang out in the lighting aisle at the Glendale Home Depot and see if they can spot some Imagineers picking out light fixtures for the next big budget Land Amplification.

 

[MoonRakerSCM]

I hate those wall lights. They're not even full size. They're half in the wall like some sort of weird stick on light that immitates a full wall sconce style light that for some ungodly reason is half embedded in the wall. This is nickle and dime cheap apartment complex post 2008 stuff here.

They also used them on the facade of the splash redo which is an absolute travesty.

 

[BuzzedPotatoHead89]

I hate those wall lights. They're not even full size. They're half in the wall like some sort of weird stick on light that immitates a full wall sconce style light that for some ungodly reason is half embedded in the wall. This is nickle and dime cheap apartment complex post 2008 stuff here.

View attachment 829766

They also used them on the facade of the splash redo which is an absolute travesty.

It looks like the light fixture is attempting to pull a Homer Simpson and bury itself into the structure from embarrassment.

 

[SuddenStorm]

Jury is still out however until normal mansion comes back. Interested to see the changes in the stretching room, hitchhikers and Bride

It's insane to me that Disney would consider touching two of the most iconic scenes in theme park history- the stretching room and the hitchhiking ghosts.

Stop messing with the stuff that works.

Fix the bride. Fix the astroturf in the queue. Fix Salt Mountain. Enhance Winnie the Pooh and make it worth riding more than once. Add scenarios to the Falcon. Do something with the Carousel Theatre building. Put the Rocket Jets back where they belong.

 

[SuddenStorm]

Why is the new gift shop so tall? Is there going to be a planetarium inside? The scale and the mass of this building is so horribly off, that it's comical.

Here's a quick n' dirty overlay of what I think should have been the height and scale of the "Carriage House" structure. Keep the same basic footprint on the ground, but maybe push it back another foot or two on the south side facing the Mansion exit. But knock off at least 30% of the roof height and gable.

Seriously, why the bleep is this building so damn tall?!? Are they really this stupid?

View attachment 829746

What's worse is they already killed the forced perspective of Splash's facade by removing the tree and adding tall foliage at the front. So not only does Tiana seem shorter and less imposing, the effect is further ruined by adding this large structure.

It's also weird to have a carriage house that's the size of the Mansion itself...

 

[TP2000]

I hate those wall lights. They're not even full size. They're half in the wall like some sort of weird stick on light that immitates a full wall sconce style light that for some ungodly reason is half embedded in the wall. This is nickle and dime cheap apartment complex post 2008 stuff here.

View attachment 829766

They also used them on the facade of the splash redo which is an absolute travesty.

Cripes! It looks even worse up close like that.

Somewhere at WDI, some intern is saying... "I swear, it looked better on display at Home Depot!"

 

[TP2000]

Do something with the Carousel Theatre building. Put the Rocket Jets back where they belong.

Please, kid, give them some time. These are theme park "experts" we are talking about!

It's only been 26 years since they royally screwed up Tomorrowland, and TDA has only had nine Presidents (Pressler, Harriss, Ouimet, Grier, Kalogridis, Colglazier, D'Amaro, Skintight Jeans Lady, Potrock) in that time. They need to appoint a committee. Or assign a task force. Or get some more feedback from a focus group. These things just don't happen overnight, you know. It takes decades and decades. And several more TDA Presidents Du Jour.

The more I think about it all, and the more TDA exerts itself on the park, the more I think that WDI and the entire Parks division needs it's own version of DOGE. Because something has obviously gone very, very wrong in the past 10 years.

 

[Too Many Hats]

It's insane to me that Disney would consider touching two of the most iconic scenes in theme park history- the stretching room and the hitchhiking ghosts.

Stop messing with the stuff that works.

Fix the bride. Fix the astroturf in the queue. Fix Salt Mountain. Enhance Winnie the Pooh and make it worth riding more than once. Add scenarios to the Falcon. Do something with the Carousel Theatre building. Put the Rocket Jets back where they belong.

Okay but what if WDI were to add “even more magic” to HM’s ballroom scene?

 

[SuddenStorm]

Okay but what if WDI were to add “even more magic” to HM’s ballroom scene?

Let's not forget that nowadays, magic = projectors in WDI speak.

 

[TP2000]

I hate those wall lights. They're not even full size. They're half in the wall like some sort of weird stick on light that immitates a full wall sconce style light that for some ungodly reason is half embedded in the wall. This is nickle and dime cheap apartment complex post 2008 stuff here.

View attachment 829766

They also used them on the facade of the splash redo which is an absolute travesty.

Here's a photo of an antique gas-fired lantern installed in 1966 in New Orleans Square and used purely for decorative purposes. In 1966 the estimated market capitalization of Walt Disney Productions was $80 Million. Adjusted for inflation, in 2024 that would be a market capitalization of $780 Million.

Today, as of the closing bell on December 9th, 2024, the Walt Disney Company has a market capitalization of $207 Billion. With a B, not an M. And here is a picture of that electric wall sconce they just installed on the new Haunted Mansion gift shop for the next 50 years.

Now tell me everything in TDA and at WDI is just fine. Go on, tell me.

 

[SuddenStorm]

Please, kid, give them some time. These are theme park "experts" we are talking about!

It's only been 26 years since they royally screwed up Tomorrowland, and TDA has only had nine Presidents (Pressler, Harriss, Ouimet, Grier, Kalogridis, Colglazier, D'Amaro, Skintight Jeans Lady, Potrock) in that time. They need to appoint a committee. Or assign a task force. Or get some more feedback from a focus group. These things just don't happen overnight, you know. It takes decades and decades. And several more TDA Presidents Du Jour.

The more I think about it all, and the more TDA exerts itself on the park, the more I think that WDI and the entire Parks division needs it's own version of DOGE. Because something has obviously gone very, very wrong in the past 10 years.

What's interesting is that Disneyland's popularity skyrocketed from 2005 to 2015ish, with minimal changes to Disenyland park itself.

They literally could have just continued to not touch Disneyland Park, kept improving DCA, and been fine. And saved millions in the process.

But for some reason in '15 they decided they had to start reversing great changes made to DCA, build SWGE in a park that didn't need it, and the rest is history.

 

[DLR92]

I think Disneyland can have expansion growth. But no one inside carefully thought about what and how to expand. Everyone just look at dollar signs and what profitable on the bottom line.

 

[Consumer]

Disneyland used to be somewhere I wanted to go.

 

[Tha Realest]

New Orleans Square used to be the perfect land.

With this addition, and it’s functional annexation of TBA, it has really been diminished.

Thankfully, the interior of HM will remain untouched. Right? Right?!?

Or will it be “amplified” for modern audiences?

 

[FerretAfros]

I hate those wall lights. They're not even full size. They're half in the wall like some sort of weird stick on light that immitates a full wall sconce style light that for some ungodly reason is half embedded in the wall. This is nickle and dime cheap apartment complex post 2008 stuff here.

View attachment 829766

They also used them on the facade of the splash redo which is an absolute travesty.

That fixture was almost certainly selected to comply with ADA's regulations on protruding objects. Essentially, in order to allow blind or low-vision people to navigate a space using a cane, objects sticking out from a wall into a walkway are limited to 4" maximum thickness:

Of course, limiting a fixture to 4" depth does not mean that this specific fixture had to be chosen. There are all sorts of light fixtures available on the market (not to mention custom fixtures) that could have complied with the code without looking so "builder grade at Home Depot."

There are also ways that a larger fixture could have been used, by blocking the ground space below it so that it is no longer considered part of the circulation path. This would reroute traffic around the protrusion and give low-vision pedestrians something that's detectable at cane level. Throughout the parks, things like this are frequently accomplished with a planter, a rock, a stack of crates (WDI's favorite!) or even just a potted plant that could all easily fit within the theme of the structure.

That said, any time a fixture choice evokes a specific part of the building code rather than the themed setting, the design has failed somewhere along the way.

[Interestingly, it seems like WDI managed to find a way to get this right for the Rise of the Resistance queue tunnels but messed it up for the main tunnel entrance to the land, both of which have walls angled inward. In the queue, rocks at the lower bump out so that the angled walls don't impede on the path of travel:

But in the land entrance, the walls have a steeper slope and the rocks along the base are smaller, so there are still plenty of places where the walls extend more than 4" into the circulation path. Ironically it's an even bigger problem at the open-end of the tunnel, where the volumes of people passing through are greater and someone could have a face-first collision with the wall rathan than just grazing their shoulder along the edge of it:

]