I am a local, and do not spend alot of time at PI, but I have been there quite a few times since I moved to Florida. I have always had a fun time, except for feeling weird drinking around kids in strollers at 11pm. We were planning on getting the premium annual passes for PI, but now won't bother. We spend more time at PI than any other 'extras' like water parks or whatever.
We do, however, like to enjoy drinks while on property and have our favorite bars. I'm hoping that whatever they do on PI, they include a couple of 21+ bars.
As a local, I sometimes feel like Disney caters more to resort guests than us, which on one hand I get: they are staying on property and spending all their money there. On the other hand, as a local, I attempt to spend all my expendable cash at Disney. It is impossible to wake up and say 'Gee, I'd love to eat at Chef Mickey's this weekend' and get a ressie a week in advance, forget about a day - and this isn't just at the really popular restaurants, I've gotten turned down for places like Kona Cafe and Spoodles. And even though EMH is great, the parks are open till midnight or later sometimes, it's useless to us as passholders - we can't get on rides during EMH. Then, of course, we could go to the Outer Rim and enjoy a pomegranate martini, but they close fairly early (by bar standards). So we'd hit up PI late night. Now, we'll be limited to hanging out at HoB or the Margarita Stand by Cap'n Jacks.
I'd love to see some good restaurants and a couple of bars at the 'new' PI. No more shops, though. We all have malls and shops, no matter where you live. And it totally stinks about AC.