Disney's Unbuilt Long Beach Harbor Project & Park Plans

Disney's Long Beach Harbor Development

• 🚢 In 1988, Disney acquired the Queen Mary and the Spruce Goose as part of the Ratherport Properties deal, alongside the Disneyland Hotel.
• 💡 Michael Eisner aimed to replicate the Orlando destination resort model in Anaheim, leading to investigations into developing the Long Beach waterfront.
• 🏗️ Early plans focused on integrating the Queen Mary and Spruce Goose into a resort, with a developer named David Malmouth brought in to conceptualize a marine-inspired theme park and urban destination resort.
• 🌊 The concept for Disney Sea in Long Beach included a central attraction called Oceanana, designed to connect people to the ocean, similar to Epcot's Spaceship Earth.
• 🚀 A parallel concept, Wescot (Westcot), was also developed with a central attraction called Space Station Earth, featuring a golden ball structure.
• ❓ Disney presented both the Long Beach (Disney Sea) and Anaheim (Wescot) park models to the Long Beach City Council, with a curtain separating the two proposals, leading to years of negotiation.

New Entertainment at Disney Parks

• 🏰 A new projection show, Once Upon a Time, replaced Celebrate the Magic at Magic Kingdom, utilizing texture mapping on the castle.
• 🎆 Jingle Bells Jingle Bam, a holiday fireworks show at Hollywood Studios, was developed by James Mako Roddy's team, featuring similar lighting to the Star Wars fireworks.
• 🎬 The Star Wars fireworks show was expected to return, with potential integration of footage from the upcoming Rogue One movie.
• 🎨 Paint the Night parade costumes were being rebuilt and potentially duplicated for Walt Disney World, considering Florida's climate.

Technology and Park Operations

• 📱 Fastpass Plus was being tested at Disney California Adventure (DCA) starting with Toy Story Midway Mania, due to its advanced technology and location within the park.
• 📈 The rollout of Fastpass Plus at DCA was seen as a test case to distribute crowds more effectively throughout the park.
• 🎬 The release of Toy Story 4 was pushed back to 2019, impacting potential updates to the Toy Story Midway Mania attraction.

Walt Disney World Updates

• 🏞️ The opening of Rivers of Light at Animal Kingdom was delayed, with initial plans to open in spring but later considered for a November debut to boost holiday traffic.
• 🛍️ Disney Springs saw adjustments to its hours, with a holiday event featuring a trail of Disney-themed trees announced.
• 🎄 The Epcot Food and Wine Festival had its setup time reduced due to the holiday decorations needing to be installed sooner.