Waterways surrounding the Magic Kingdom

[copcarguyp71]

New attraction in the works...Alligator Encounter

 

[DisneyRoy]

The MK area in 1969. Two years before the MK opened. North is right. This shows just to what extent the water all around is man made. Including the little lake in question. The lake can be 'moved' at will, within reason.

View attachment 92929

This is what amazes me. They went from this picture to OPEN in two years. Nowadays in two years, we can't even get a remade/overlaid Frozen ride in Epcot. Or a third track at TSMM. What does it take to get Disney to move to complete something in a decent amount of time?

 

[Master Yoda]

This is what amazes me. They went from this picture to OPEN in two years. Nowadays in two years, we can't even get a remade/overlaid Frozen ride in Epcot. Or a third track at TSMM. What does it take to get Disney to move to complete something in a decent amount of time?

It was a different time and a different situation.

When you are building a commercial property with borrowed money it is typically in your best interest to build as fast as possible so what you are building can generate revenue. The con is building fast is more expensive than building at a more reasonable pace.

The difference now is Disney is essentially paying cash vs. financing. When you do that it looks much better on the books to spread out the cost of construction over as many quarters as possible. You also do not have to pay overtime, surcharges for accelerating construction, etc.

 

[danlb_2000]

I could be wrong but I seem to remember that it was a grassy area and it seems like I remember when they were digging the pond it was around the time they started the Fantasyland construction. I assumed it was related, to displace drainage from somewhere else.

They started to add that pond sometime in 2004. This is around the time when 20K was removed so it may have been built to compensate for the loss of that body of water. The pond was then expanded in 2010 as part of the Fantasyland Expansion and they also added the pond behind Be Our Guest. The expansion created a lot more "non-permeable" surfaces so the water needed to go somewhere.

5/9/2004

12/3/2004

11/11/2011

 

[danlb_2000]

It's not a simple process. They have to go through the SFWMD and file hundreds of pages of drawings and calculations. But they do it all the time - including for New Fantasyland and even the Rapunzel Restroom project. In fact, they relocated that one in the "Fallout Zone" as part of NFL.

 

[s8film40]

It was a different time and a different situation.

When you are building a commercial property with borrowed money it is typically in your best interest to build as fast as possible so what you are building can generate revenue. The con is building fast is more expensive than building at a more reasonable pace.

The difference now is Disney is essentially paying cash vs. financing. When you do that it looks much better on the books to spread out the cost of construction over as many quarters as possible. You also do have to pay overtime, surcharges for accelerating construction, etc.

I guess someone forgot to tell Universal this.

 

[ABQ]

They started to add that pond sometime in 2004. This is around the time when 20K was removed so it may have been built to compensate for the loss of that body of water. The pond was then expanded in 2010 as part of the Fantasyland Expansion and they also added the pond behind Be Our Guest. The expansion created a lot more "non-permeable" surfaces so the water needed to go somewhere.

5/9/2004

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12/3/2004
View attachment 93108

11/11/2011
View attachment 93109

Interesting that they left a little island in the center. Care to guess why?

 

[lazyboy97o]

Interesting that they left a little island in the center. Care to guess why?

Aesthetics would be a big possibility. The water management systems at Walt Disney World are supposed to look natural.