New Orleans Square is getting Flattened

[MoonRakerSCM]

I saw those tables last Friday, they were certainly unexpectedly out of place and bad show. Good example of Disney quality these days...

 

[TP2000]

These park/school campus tables have been around since the park reopened last April. I'm honestly surprised they have been out this long let alone at all, they look absolutely terrible along the ROA. On the flip side we got a hilarious "Karen" moment at these tables. LOL

Oh, my heart sank as I read this. Because I had just finished convincing myself that this was just a temporary "test" this week by some well meaning but not smart young intern who was tasked with seeing if the nearby restaurants could expand their capacity by adding patio dining on the nearby terraces.

And once this 3 day test was over and the intern got in trouble for using the furniture from a Costco snack bar, WDI would swoop in and Kim Irvine would have a Parks Blog post about picking just the right shade of dusty blue to paint the custom wrought iron patio tables and chairs as you'd find on a leafy New Orleans patio circa 1875, with potted plants, hanging ferns, and a trickling fountain. Something like this...

But instead... they've been using Costco snack bar furniture for over a year?!?

I'm thisclose to being done with this dump.

 

[WDWJoeG]

Oh, my heart sank as I read this. Because I had just finished convincing myself that this was just a temporary "test" this week by some well meaning but not smart young intern who was tasked with seeing if the nearby restaurants could expand their capacity by adding patio dining on the nearby terraces.

And once this 3 day test was over and the intern got in trouble for using the furniture from a Costco snack bar, WDI would swoop in and Kim Irvine would have a Parks Blog post about picking just the right shade of dusty blue to paint the custom wrought iron patio tables and chairs as you'd find on a leafy New Orleans patio circa 1875, with potted plants, hanging ferns, and a trickling fountain. Something like this...

But instead... they've been using Costco snack bar furniture for over a year?!?

I'm thisclose to being done with this dump.

Again, they laugh at us. Those of us who live in our memories of the park, blinded by nostalgia, clinging to the concept of "good show" and "on stage" while the place is run by revenue management guys who could not care less about such nonsense.

Oh, and Kim Irvine would have published a thousand word backstory about the ironworking family who immigrated from France to New Orleans in 1873 and started their new life in America by making these four chairs and a table.

 

[TP2000]

I went overboard in that post above, and I insulted a good name that I shouldn't have. I need to apologize.

Costco snack bars actually have patio tables that are nicer than this. I shouldn't have besmirched the good name of Costco or the hot dogs and pizza slices they sell there. I sincerely apologize for dragging Costco through the mud like that and accusing them of being no better than New Orleans Square. Costco snack bars are far more themed and aesthetically appropriate than 2022 New Orleans Square. I won't let it happen again.

 

[WDWJoeG]

I went overboard in that post above, and I insulted someone I should haven't. I need to apologize.

Costco snack bars actually have patio tables that are nicer than this. I shouldn't have besmirched the good name of Costco or the hot dogs and pizza slices they sell there. I sincerely apologize for dragging Costco through the mud like that and accusing them of being no better than New Orleans Square. Costco is far more themed and aesthetically appropriate than 2022 New Orleans Square. I won't let it happen again.

Yeah, and all of those tables match!

Disneyland gave us a square AND a round just to flaunt their disdain for those "theme nerds".

My OCD weeps.

 

[mickEblu]

I guess they could .... I still haven't looked into it. But there would be almost no benefit to doing so. The bridge was built to create a grade separation for the Pirates queue, which would still be an issue if they removed it. Additionally the bridge contains storage areas for Fantasmic that would need to be moved.

Maybe as others have said it would make sense if they are ultimately planning to tear out the Treehouse and build a new queue for pirates on the east side, but that would take a lot longer than two months.

Yup this is the conclusion I came to as well. I see no benefit of removing the courtyard/ bridge unless the treehouse is going away too.

 

[mickEblu]

I haven't looked into what is going on, but I just assumed that if anything was bring removed, it was the small section of "raised" platform between the main Esplanade Road and Cafe Orleans/French Market:

View attachment 625987


That small platform has capacity for only a couple hundred people, so out of the 10,000 normally estimated for Fantasmic, it's a rather small number. It does take up a lot of space though, and has stairways on both sides of it, which makes routing traffic (and maintaining an emergency entrance/exit) difficult during Fantasmic. By removing it, they can push the crowd up a little further toward the river, and make more room for traffic entering/exiting New Orleans Square during the show.

But all of that is just speculation because again, I haven't looked into any of it. Does make some sense though as any other rerouting or "flattening" would require massive work that couldn't be completed in two months time (with rehearsals in between).

Of these levels I’m most fond of the planter closest to Cafe Orleans and what it does for the atmosphere so I hope at least that one stays untouched.

 

[mickEblu]

Oh, Gawd. I knew it was getting bad, but I had no idea it was this bad.

How? Why? Who approved it?

And when do they install the Coke machine in the matching anti-theft cage next to these tables?

Wow I’m a little disappointed in myself. I’d like to think I have an eye and pay attention to detail. I sat on one of those tables about 5 weeks ago…and thought absolutely nothing of it. It didn’t stick out to me in the slightest. Now granted we have kids and strollers and bags and you name it to distract us but still. I mean sometimes we re just happy to find a table. With that said, this doesn’t bother me more than those new Frontierland gates. Id like to think these are temporary-ish

 

[Disney Irish]

Wow I’m a little disappointed in myself. I’d like to think I have an eye and pay attention to detail. I sat on one of those tables about 5 weeks ago…and thought absolutely nothing of it. It didn’t stick out to me in the slightest. Now granted we have kids and strollers and bags and you name it to distract us but still. I mean sometimes we re just happy to find a table. With that said, this doesn’t bother me more than those new Frontierland gates. Id like to think these are temporary-ish

To be honest they don't bother me much either, even though they aren't of the normal FrontierLand or NOS "style".

My thought, besides you touting the kids and stuff around just happy to find a table, could be that Disney has trained us not to mind stuff in green. With the infamous "go-away green" used everywhere maybe we're just used to stuff being green and so overlook things that might seem out-of-place when its a green color. Just my thought on it anyways.

 

[CaptinEO]

I just stared at those photos from @WDWJoeG again.

What in the holy hell is going on at Disneyland?!?

Wow. This is like someone got the cheapest outdoor table they could find at home depot, but they threw it into Walt Disney's New Orleans Square.

To be fair if they asked WDI to make a table they would end up spending 30 grand per table and it would take 2 years.

Still though this is pretty bad.

 

[Dear Prudence]

Didn’t mean to scare you. According to Rat Chat, they re finally getting around to some of the project stardust stuff they wanted to do a few years ago. All those tiered walkways are going away and being flattened. Hopefully they find a way to preserve the planters and trees. I will admit the area is a pain to navigate during busy days especially when the POTC queue spills into them and ESPECIALLY with a stroller.

So now the long POTC closure makes much more sense. This sounds like a complete POTC outdoor queue and NOS walkway redo. Sounds like the rumor of them removing those sick trees is true too. I also have to wonder if this is what the Tarzan Treehouse delay is all about. Could they be removing that “tree” they added back when they changed it from Swiss Family Robinson? Or is the attraction being completely removed to make more space for the new outdoor POTC queue?

They just released a poster for Tarzan's Tree House last year and it looks like it's tied to Jungle Cruise in some way.

 

[mickEblu]

They just released a poster for Tarzan's Tree House last year and it looks like it's tied to Jungle Cruise in some way.

Oh really? Maybe they re giving it a S.E.A retheme. Can’t be worse than Tarzan

 

[SuddenStorm]

Wow I’m a little disappointed in myself. I’d like to think I have an eye and pay attention to detail. I sat on one of those tables about 5 weeks ago…and thought absolutely nothing of it. It didn’t stick out to me in the slightest. Now granted we have kids and strollers and bags and you name it to distract us but still. I mean sometimes we re just happy to find a table. With that said, this doesn’t bother me more than those new Frontierland gates. Id like to think these are temporary-ish

Same! I never sat on them though, just walked by...

But also I've noticed after the Splash change and all the other reductions in show I've kind of forced myself to 'tune out' that kind of stuff, for the sake of enjoying the day.

I'm assuming once Fantasmic! is back these tables will go away.

 

[mickEblu]

Same! I never sat on them though, just walked by...

But also I've noticed after the Splash change and all the other reductions in show I've kind of forced myself to 'tune out' that kind of stuff, for the sake of enjoying the day.

I'm assuming once Fantasmic! is back these tables will go away.

Yeah that could definitely have something to do with it. I think the color also as Irish pointed out. Going back to the courtyard I really hope it stays. I was looking at it yesterday with a fresh pair of eyes due to the news and it really is beautiful with the bridge, trees, winding ramps, fountain and plaque

 

[TP2000]

Oh, and Kim Irvine would have published a thousand word backstory about the ironworking family who immigrated from France to New Orleans in 1873 and started their new life in America by making these four chairs and a table.

I can poke some fun at Ms. Irvine and her Parks Blog videos as much as the next guy, but in all seriousness when they let highly paid Imagineers like Ms. Irvine (who clearly has a genuine love for the park and its history) go a bit overboard on the details it never degrades the park, it generally enhances it.

I would much rather have circa 1870's park benches along this terrace that Ms. Irvine obsessed over for too many weeks and spent too much money on than have Costco snack bar tables plopped there.

As a reminder, here's WDI artwork from 1964 on what New Orleans Square would look like when it opened in 1966. Notice the Hub style park benches along the terraced riverbanks...

But when they developed the land they found more theme appropriate benches instead; wrought iron fancy benches circa 1870 instead of small town wood slat benches circa 1910.

In spring 1966 they released some publicity shots of the new land, and you can see several types of benches. Notice the small wrought iron on the right, as larger versions of that bench would be placed roughly where the Costco tables are now.

Here's a postcard from 1967, where you can see the wrought iron benches they ended up placing there.

And into the 21st century, those similar benches existed in New Orleans Square. Here's a shot from a Disney Parks Blog post from the 2010's, with several of those themed benches still placed about in New Orleans Square...

But then fast forward to 2021-2022, where the traditional showmanship standards and checks-and-balances for the park operation have apparently collapsed. The people running the place today have no idea what they're doing, and Kim Irvine has likely been working from home for the past two years in her pajamas, sipping Merlot on her Zoom calls, and has no idea what the park is actually doing.

Paging Kim Irvine: Please Report To New Orleans Square! In Person! Not A Zoom Call! Drive To Anaheim! Hurry!

 

[CaptinEO]

I can poke some fun at Ms. Irvine and her Parks Blog videos as much as the next guy, but in all seriousness when they let highly paid Imagineers like Ms. Irvine (who clearly has a genuine love for the park and its history) go a bit overboard on the details it never degrades the park, it generally enhances it.

I would much rather have circa 1870's park benches along this terrace that Ms. Irvine obsessed over for too many weeks and spent too much money on than have Costco snack bar tables plopped there.

As a reminder, here's WDI artwork from 1964 on what New Orleans Square would look like when it opened in 1966. Notice the Hub style park benches along the terraced riverbanks...

But when they developed the land they found more theme appropriate benches instead; wrought iron fancy benches circa 1870 instead of small town wood slat benches circa 1910.

In spring 1966 they released some publicity shots of the new land, and you can see several types of benches. Notice the small wrought iron on the right, as larger versions of that bench would be placed roughly where the Costco tables are now.

Here's a postcard from 1967, where you can see the wrought iron benches they ended up placing there.

And into the 21st century, those similar benches existed in New Orleans Square. Here's a shot from a Disney Parks Blog post from the 2010's, with several of those themed benches still placed about in New Orleans Square...

But then fast forward to 2021-2022, where the traditional showmanship standards and checks-and-balances for the park operation have apparently collapsed. The people running the place today have no idea what they're doing, and Kim Irvine has likely been working from home for the past two years in her pajamas, sipping Merlot on her Zoom calls, and has no idea what the park is actually doing.

Paging Kim Irvine: Please Report To New Orleans Square! In Person! Not A Zoom Call! Drive To Anaheim! Hurry!

You know what, you are absolutely right. With things getting so bad, I'd much rather have an overdone/tacky object for Kim to brag about.

Regardless of some of her design choices she actually DOES care. And overdoing things is a better alternative to not caring.

 

[TP2000]

It seems my ranting caused a stir. A little bird dropped by this evening to give me some additional information on these tacky Costco snack bar tables that have been in New Orleans Square for the last year. It seems there's a rather subversive strategy here, and a strategy I actually approve of.

I'm going to paraphrase a bit the information I was given this evening, and just flat out quote the rest..

Yes, these picnic tables along the New Orleans Square riverbanks are tacky. They are there on purpose. After Disneyland was closed for over a year by order of the Governor, the state of California allowed theme parks to reopen with endless rules and strict mandates. The only places in theme parks that masks were not required, indoors or outdoors, were in "Designated Dining Areas". The response by a TDA lady Vice President named Kris Theiler was to cram as many "Designated Dining Areas" into the park as possible. As long as Disneyland visitors were sitting at patio tables and in "Designated Dining Areas", they could remain unmasked and there wasn't anything Sacramento bureaucrats could do about it since they wrote the mandates themselves.

As has been documented on other websites, there are a lot of these little patio dining areas now wedged along walkways and under utilized areas around both Disneyland and DCA. This area along the New Orleans Square riverbank, in the Fantasmic! viewing area, was one of the places Ms. Theiler pushed patio tables into. At the time, there was no thought given to thematic integrity, after all Disneyland had been closed for a year and TDA was fighting to just reopen the park any way they could. Plus, all the fancy Imagineers who are normally in charge of this stuff were either on furlough, or working from home via entirely ineffective wine-fueled Zoom calls, and thus were worthless.

So TDA just did it themselves, fast and cheap. And they bought some dark green patio tables off the Internet, so people could sit and rest, with or without food, and they didn't have to wear a mask. Because.... The Science from Sacramento somehow said that was okay.

Apparently Ms. Theiler pushed as many brand new "Designated Dining Areas" into Disneyland as she could. I kind of like her style! Brava, Ms. Theiler!

All that said, Covid is now over. The statewide mask mandates have ended, and Orange County has historically been far safer and healthier, and is already three steps ahead of Los Angeles County next door in removing any and all Covid mandates. So... it's time for these tacky Costco patio tables to go away. I get it, it was TDA making a sneaky jab at Sacramento's ridiculous Covid mandates back in 2021. But it's now time to move on. Thank goodness!

 

[WDWJoeG]

It seems my ranting caused a stir. A little bird dropped by this evening to give me some additional information on these tacky Costco snack bar tables that have been in New Orleans Square for the last year. It seems there's a rather subversive strategy here, and a strategy I actually approve of.

I'm going to paraphrase a bit the information I was given this evening, and just flat out quote the rest..

Yes, these picnic tables along the New Orleans Square riverbanks are tacky. They are there on purpose. After Disneyland was closed for over a year by order of the Governor, the state of California allowed theme parks to reopen with endless rules and strict mandates. The only places in theme parks that masks were not required, indoors or outdoors, were in "Designated Dining Areas". The response by a TDA lady Vice President named Kris Theiler was to cram as many "Designated Dining Areas" into the park as possible. As long as Disneyland visitors were sitting at patio tables and in "Designated Dining Areas", they could remain unmasked and there wasn't anything Sacramento bureaucrats could do about it since they wrote the mandates themselves.

As has been documented on other websites, there are a lot of these little patio dining areas now wedged along walkways and under utilized areas around both Disneyland and DCA. This area along the New Orleans Square riverbank, in the Fantasmic! viewing area, was one of the places Ms. Theiler pushed patio tables into. At the time, there was no thought given to thematic integrity, after all Disneyland had been closed for a year and TDA was fighting to just reopen the park any way they could. Plus, all the fancy Imagineers who are normally in charge of this stuff were either on furlough, or working from home via entirely ineffective wine-fueled Zoom calls, and thus were worthless.

So TDA just did it themselves, fast and cheap. And they bought some dark green patio tables off the Internet, so people could sit and rest, with or without food, and they didn't have to wear a mask. Because.... The Science from Sacramento somehow said that was okay.

Apparently Ms. Theiler pushed as many brand new "Designated Dining Areas" into Disneyland as she could. I kind of like her style! Brava, Ms. Theiler!

All that said, Covid is now over. The statewide mask mandates have ended, and Orange County has historically been far safer and healthier, and is already three steps ahead of Los Angeles County next door in removing any and all Covid mandates. So... it's time for these tacky Costco patio tables to go away. I get it, it was TDA making a sneaky jab at Sacramento's ridiculous Covid mandates back in 2021. But it's now time to move on. Thank goodness!

Let's assume that is 100% true. So this mess was created to allow a couple of dozen people to not wear a mask?

That rounding error benefit hardly seems like a worthy trade off to the horrible lack of theme and downgrade to the entire area.

I would argue that is even a more telling example of horribly misplaced priorities.

 

[CaptinEO]

Let's assume that is 100% true. So this mess was created to allow a couple of dozen people to not wear a mask?

That rounding error benefit hardly seems like a worthy trade off to the horrible lack of theme and downgrade to the entire area.

I would argue that is even a more telling example of horribly misplaced priorities.

I mean Disney was devastated by the closure, just like many other businesses. I went the month after the park reopened and wearing a mask all day in Spring Time (yes you had to wear it outdoors too) was grating.

It definitely makes sense. No way would they have the time or budget to have imagineering make these for reopening.

 

[WDWJoeG]

I mean Disney was devastated by the closure, just like many other businesses. I went the month after the park reopened and wearing a mask all day in Spring Time (yes you had to wear it outdoors too) was grating.

It definitely makes sense. No way would they have the time or budget to have imagineering make these for reopening.

Didn't say they would have had time to make permanent dining areas (and they wouldn't for that area anyway).

The question is, is it EVER acceptable at Disneyland to turn New Orleans Square into the Del Mar Fair? I say no, you say yes, we disagree.

And masks have not been required for several months outdoors...and yet these are still here.