The Land balloons

[FettFan]

Strictly a cost savings action. WDI giveth, TDO taketh away! Welcome to Walt Disney's Diminished World! It is the same as the way Walt Disney Budgeteering has turned fountains into planters all across the property.

Pathetic!

Ooh, I can play this game!

Yesterday:

Today:

 

[copcarguyp71]

Ooh, I can play this game!

Yesterday:

Today:

Second linky....shezanoworkie!

 

[Goofyernmost]

Digusting and most of these were operational in 2012, Just another way of Disney showing contempt for it's guests as in we are too stupid to notice that fountains now are used as planters.

Contempt is a pretty harsh word, I'd say that they own the place and decided to cut back on costs that were either never looked at or were abused and didn't care if they shut them down or not. Possibly ignorance of how to produce the show and what might be important. I can't imagine Disney holding a meeting and someone saying..."let's get those damn tourists that interfere with my relaxing work schedule and turn those fountains into planters, that will show them. They're too stupid to notice anyway." They had a reason, it just might not be something that we agree with. Such is life.

 

[ford91exploder]

Contempt is a pretty harsh word, I'd say that they own the place and decided to cut back on costs that were either never looked at or were abused and didn't care if they shut them down or not. Possibly ignorance of how to produce the show and what might be important. I can't imagine Disney holding a meeting and someone saying..."let's get those damn tourists that interfere with my relaxing work schedule and turn those fountains into planters, that will show them. They're too stupid to notice anyway." They had a reason, it just might not be something that we agree with. Such is life.

No the meeting went 'we are not going to make our bonus targets, what can we cut', It never occurred to them to actually create something we wanted to buy and make their bonus targets that way. This is the very defininition of contempt.

Gordon Behune who was CEO of US Airways had a saying 'How much cheese can you take away before it stops being a pizza' - this was in reference to the poor customer service and quality at US Air prior to his team taking over. They had broken seats, mismatched seats etc. Hmmm sounds like a park in FL.

 

[Wisconsin]

I wonder how heavy those ballons actually are. They may not be as heavy as they look. Being an indoor installation, I wouldn't be too worried about them moving around above my head as I ate. There are ceiling fans moving above our heads all the time. It was a nice touch to see them moving!

 

[lazyboy97o]

I wonder how heavy those ballons actually are. They may not be as heavy as they look. Being an indoor installation, I wouldn't be too worried about them moving around above my head as I ate. There are ceiling fans moving above our heads all the time. It was a nice touch to see them moving!

Yes, but Disney's track record lately has not been so reassuring.

 

[FettFan]

Second linky....shezanoworkie!

Yeah. I tried fixing it, but apparently wdwmagic does not like "easy wdw".

Anyhoo...it's basically the same picture but with the waterfall turned off.

 

[BobConnor]

Yes, but Disney's track record lately has not been so reassuring.

It could not cost much to make the balloons move. From what I could see on IASW which has balloons like that (I know, I should not be looking up to see how it works) It is an industrial ceiling fan on a low speed with a cam mechanism to make the balloons go up and down. The power cost is minimal. As for the murals maybe they became dirty and it was cheaper to paint over them. But then why doesn't Disney come up with a way to clean them economically? Oh, and also find a way to clean the acoustical tile ceiling in The Land. It is beginning to look like a old Sears.

 

[marni1971]

RIP another little detail...

 

[harryk]

No matter - it all boils down to $$$$ - seems that the Disney Parks just don't have enough guests paying enough $$ to keep things running?!?!?

 

[Clamman73]

Without the balloons moving and the fountain gone, there's a loss of kinetic energy inside The Land. When you walk in now, it's almost like walking into a food court at the mall. At least they got the escalators moving...

 

[DVCOwner]

I don't think everything is tied to money. I am an engineer in charge of maintenance on 130 facilities. I can tell you that it cost more to keep the plants in those fountains than it would be to keep them running. There must of been another reason to shut them down. Water quality by guest misusing the fountains would be my guess.

 

[marni1971]

Perhaps, but why are others of similar design and size still working?

Small water features disappearing was attributed a while back in part to drought conditions. But still?

And of course that isn't attributable to non water effects.

 

[Phonedave]

Disney was going to add strobes and put it in "B" mode but the MM+ budget appropriated the money for that. If you blink your eyes really quick they seem to move.

And a fan blowing on them. You forgot the fan.

-dave

 

[Phonedave]

I don't think everything is tied to money. I am an engineer in charge of maintenance on 130 facilities. I can tell you that it cost more to keep the plants in those fountains than it would be to keep them running. There must of been another reason to shut them down. Water quality by guest misusing the fountains would be my guess.

While I don't have experience as you do, I was going to say that I suspect it is not for money. Once installed a fountain requires very little in the way of maintenance. Top up the water every so often if it needs it, clean out the skimmer, and maybe throw a handfull of mosquito granuales in it every so often. Once it a while you do have to scrub the thing out, but it is still not a big deal (that is what I do with the one my yard).

Comparing that to the time and money I spend on flower beds and planters - I would rather have a yard full of fountains. Of course they cost a lot to install in the first place.

I am guessing it is water quality as well - who knows what people put in the fountains. But then again, when WDW maintenance was at a high point you got the impression - just walking around property - that it was a nice place, and you should treat it as such. Now, it seems like an upscale Six Flags - and people treat it as such. I'm not saying it is right, but people tend to act as you expect them to act. You behave differntly in Cosmic Ray's than you do in Victoria and Alberts because you expect to. Maybe if WDW expected it's guests to respect the park because TDO respects the park, then guest would respect the park.

-dave

 

[ABQ]

While I don't have experience as you do, I was going to say that I suspect it is not for money. Once installed a fountain requires very little in the way of maintenance. Top up the water every so often if it needs it, clean out the skimmer, and maybe throw a handfull of mosquito granuales in it every so often. Once it a while you do have to scrub the thing out, but it is still not a big deal (that is what I do with the one my yard).

Comparing that to the time and money I spend on flower beds and planters - I would rather have a yard full of fountains. Of course they cost a lot to install in the first place.

I am guessing it is water quality as well - who knows what people put in the fountains. But then again, when WDW maintenance was at a high point you got the impression - just walking around property - that it was a nice place, and you should treat it as such. Now, it seems like an upscale Six Flags - and people treat it as such. I'm not saying it is right, but people tend to act as you expect them to act. You behave differntly in Cosmic Ray's than you do in Victoria and Alberts because you expect to. Maybe if WDW expected it's guests to respect the park because TDO respects the park, then guest would respect the park.

-dave

No experience maintaining a fountain for me...however...I will say this, especially when it comes to central Florida water....the flowers/plants or even a fake plastic flower bed smells WAAAAAAY better than the water from those fountains.

 

[MinnieM123]

RIP another little detail...

Details . . . festive balloons gently floating up and down were so peaceful to watch, especially while enjoying lunch at the tables below, in what was once called (back in the mid-80s) the Farmer's Market. My mother and I very much enjoyed The Land on our fist visit to WDW back then.

The balloons were a silent, understated, and unexpected, point of interest. Their soft movements created a soothing effect, in contrast to the outside energy and excitement in EPCOT Center.

I hope the balloons will be in working order again, so that all guests may enjoy one of the lovelier design nuances of The Land pavilion. The Land still remains to be one of my favorite FW attractions, even if the ambiance is not quite what it used to be in the past.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Water quality the issue? Really?

Drought? Really?

Apparantly, there's no drought in EPCOT. Fountian at the entrance, at Innoventions plaza, at Imagination, at M:S, at France, waterfalls in Canada, and Norway, etc.
There is however a different ops budget than the MK...


I think the missing fountains are perhaps a matter of poor plumbing somewhere, too expensive to fix. Maybe simply a broken pipe underneath an AL building. Or just - even more banal - accountaneering.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

I don't think everything is tied to money. I am an engineer in charge of maintenance on 130 facilities. I can tell you that it cost more to keep the plants in those fountains than it would be to keep them running. There must of been another reason to shut them down. Water quality by guest misusing the fountains would be my guess.

Maybe. But never underestimate accountaneering. There is a budget for horticulture, and another for plumbing/infrastructure maintenance. Even if plants would be more expensive than fountains, accountaneering could still result in the fountains being closed for plants. Depending on which department's budget is cut.

A large corporation often puts the federal government to shame for bureaucracy. When presented with the choice of 'cheap and quality' vs 'expensive and non-quality' it can perfectly well pick the latter option for reasons of inner structure. The results are then commonly felt or even discovered in the lower echelons more than the upper ones.


And sometimes it is simply a matter of a hotshot MBA in need 'increase in efficieny' on his resumé.

A budget cut shows up as a real cost efficiency measure, instantly. That is, as a sign of mamagement doing its work - by running a place efficiently. Show quality cuts show up as an intangible, often with a delay. If I had to make a career at TWDC, I'd drive show into the ground, fill my resumé with fantastic financial and operational results, and be out and up before the tihs hits the fan.

 

[Omnispace]

A budget cut shows up as a real cost efficiency measure, instantly. That is, as a sign of mamagement doing its work - by running a place efficiently. Show quality cuts show up as an intangible, often with a delay. If I had to make a career at TWDC, I'd drive show into the ground, fill my resumé with fantastic financial and operational results, and be out and up before the tihs hits the fan.

It's been done -- he became CEO of the Gap when things started falling apart at Disney. Needless to say, his time at Gap was a complete disaster.