So What's Coming to the New Pleasure Island?

[Jason71]

A CM let slip the AdvClub (and possibly others) are booked for corporate parties Super Bowl week, so no changes before February at the absolute earliest.

At this point, who wants to be the first store owner to move in there? I can't imagine the owner of Curl has too much good to say about his Disney landlords right now. Even the Samba Room knock-off, would they really want to open right now only to be surrounded by empty buildings. I'm thinking PI will be the new Oddysey--a high profile location only used for the occasional special event or bathroom stop.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Well I guess theoretically anyone business person could rent the AC building, work a legal agreement with Disney to use the entire AC show, and actually re-open the AC...

If Disney wouldn't license the AC show, wouldn't that be a hint it's coming back in the future?

I realize the above has no chance of actually happening.. I'm just tossing it out there..

MG

 

[zulemara]

I'm tryin to save the cool ya know...40 million to buy Mannequins

 

[zulemara]

hot off the presses - word that they have already sold mannequins, 8-trax, AC, and BET. No word on motion or CW. I'm working diligently to find the source and find out if the clubs would remain the same

edit: this apparently came from a club manager. More details to follow

edit2: Security has locked the clubs and no one is allowed to go in them because they have been sold.
edit3: RRNBC is likely going to be torn down

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

RRBC needs $millions in renovations so it was a given that it must come down. Plus the space overlooking the lake is valuable.

As to the purchase of the clubs, PLEASE UPDATE ASAP!!!!!

BobK/Orlando

 

[zulemara]

RRBC needs $millions in renovations so it was a given that it must come down. Plus the space overlooking the lake is valuable.

As to the purchase of the clubs, PLEASE UPDATE ASAP!!!!!

BobK/Orlando

trust me, the minute I have more info leaked I'll post it! At this point, the source said he did not know if the clubs will remain the same, which I consider to be a positive piece of information. No news is good news, but the specifics of his information makes me think this might be more than just another rumor.

 

[Scurvy]

There's a private event at the AC tonight and as of yesterday the people involved had not been told anything about it needing to be relocated. Plus, some of the artifacts inside the Club are supposedly owned by one of the imagineers and are to go back to him when everything is removed from the building.

Also, even though Disney has started selling more of their property lately, I didn't think they were going to sell any of DTD. Everything else I've heard has them leasing out space, not selling it.

As much as I would love to hear that the locations/concepts are being leased to an outside party and will return to operation, I would find it shocking if they were actually sold. Not that I am doubting you or your source! I just doubt that part of the info.

I'm also very anxious to hear any updates! Thanks for sharing what you've heard so far.

 

[DisneyHumbug]

Just curious, did they usually close the AC on a Saturday night for a private party? Or when they booked this event, did Disney know it would already be closed?

 

[Scurvy]

Just curious, did they usually close the AC on a Saturday night for a private party? Or when they booked this event, did Disney know it would already be closed?

While the AC was still open there were lots of private events there. They had the events in the early evening and opened the AC late on those nights. I don't remember any times when the AC didn't open at all because of an event but there were usually several late openings each month.

I think that all of the remaining events (including tonight) were booked before the closure was announced. We tried to book one after the closing was announced and were unable to do so.

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

I've posted before and after photos of the sign changes over at my blog:

www.savepleasureisland.blogspot.com

I'm also wondering about the supposed "sale" of the buildings versus "lease". Makes more sense that they've leased the buildings out. And that's a good sign to me because if true, they would not be torn down but merely renovated and re-used. For most of those buildings, they were built as night clubs and it would be very expensive to try to convert to some other use.

BobK/Orlando

 

[angelmav]

Interesting....I will be following this one closely with fingers crossed!

 

[TDC Nala]

The bar kiosk outside AC now serves popcorn and nonalcoholic slushy drinks.

 

[KYMickey]

The bar kiosk outside AC now serves popcorn and nonalcoholic slushy drinks.

Quick, get out of the way! I need to hurry and get my fix of popcorn and slushies! This is certainly much ado about nothing. Hopefully we'll see something better in the future. If everything is going to be of this caliber I'm certainly glad they closed PI.

 

[Jason71]

Quick, get out of the way! I need to hurry and get my fix of popcorn and slushies! This is certainly much ado about nothing. Hopefully we'll see something better in the future. If everything is going to be of this caliber I'm certainly glad they closed PI.

It's like any restaurant. You're not paying for the food, you're paying for the atmosphere...of vacant buildings and contruction walls. The perfect attraction for those who find watching paint dry too intense.

 

[zulemara]

This is just pathetic...I didn't even mention the AC club!

I'm writing this letter to express my extreme disappointment in the
management of Walt Disney World. I am frustrated, sad, downright angry,
and nostalgic all at the same time about the closing of Pleasure Island.
Pleasure Island has been a fantastic place for the adult solo traveler,
college crowd, convention crowd, and many more to have some adult fun
while visiting WDW. There is nowhere else to go to dance to 70s and 80s
or techno and guests wanting to have a night life will now be looking
off property to fill their need. If the "bold new vision" of DTD
included something other than outsourced restaurants and a t-shirt shop,
maybe it would sting a little less. Unfortunately, we're getting a
T-shirt shop, outsourced restaurants, and a giant blimp. How exactly
does this satisfy my desire for comedy, dancing, or a night life?
Mannequins was once rated one of the best clubs in the country! It's
hard to believe it could come to this.

I am flying to WDW Friday morning and flying home on Sunday in an
attempt to say goodbye one last time to the place I call my second home.
It's my second home not because of alcohol consumption, but because I
met some fantastic cast members while picking up extra hours as a door
host at 8-trax. I still know managers, door hosts, and ticketing CMs
even though I've lived in WI the last 4 years. Sadly it seems there are
executives more interested in playing landlord than offering something
for EVERYONE to do. It was pretty creative to slowly kill the island so
its closing could be justified. It's too bad that creativity couldn't
be put to better use. Just remember, "you're dead if you aim for only
for kids. Adults are just kids grown up anyway."



They sent back:

Thank you for contacting the Walt Disney World Resort.

We hope your recent visit was an enjoyable one. We recognize that the
closing of the Adventurer's Club has disappointed Guests who have come
to enjoy the unique entertainment that has been offered over the years.
With that in mind, please know a tremendous amount of thought went into
the decision as we bring the new vision for Downtown Disney to life. As
we look to the future, we are excited about the evolution that will
occur over the next two years, introducing a brand new mix of shopping,
dining and other experiences for our Guests' enjoyment.

Our Guests' feedback, as well as their continued enthusiasm for our
products and services, are very important to us. We genuinely
appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts with us.

Sincerely,

Walt Disney World Resort



morons....

 

[rpmdfw]

This is just pathetic...I didn't even mention the AC club!

morons....

You didn't expect them to actually LISTEN to what you had to say did you?

They don't CARE what we want. They want to TELL us what we want.

 

[jfinke]

With that in mind, please know a tremendous amount of thought went into
the decision as we bring the new vision for Downtown Disney to life.

We put the numbers into a spreadsheet and found better numbers.

 

[zulemara]

You didn't expect them to actually LISTEN to what you had to say did you?

They don't CARE what we want. They want to TELL us what we want.

of course not, but the least they could have done is given me a form letter about mannequins or 8-trax. Don't get me wrong, you know I'm in support of AC too, but the fact that I didn't even mention AC and they sent back an AC letter is pathetic! I'll still be sending snail mail letters to all the executives.

 

[2Xited4Disney]

I'll still be sending snail mail letters to all the executives.

I stop sending to Disney after my last letter I sent to them. I sent them a letter around June explaining that I would be traveling to WDW in August, I am huge fan blah blah blah. I told them that I am a Town Recreation Director and the number one request was a week long trip away. I had been given the go ahead to start the planning. I explained that on my upcoming trip I would love to sit down with someone to start the planning of a group of about 40-50 people. I made 10 copys and sent them to various offices, CRO, Grand Gatherings, etc. I got ZERO response. I then proceeded to email the same letter... Nothing..... Now I guess I could have called someone but I didn't want to wast a Reservation persons time with questions. It looks like we'll be taking 40-50 people off site

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

They sent back:

Thank you for contacting the Walt Disney World Resort.

We hope your recent visit was an enjoyable one. We recognize that the
closing of the Adventurer's Club has disappointed Guests who have come
to enjoy the unique entertainment that has been offered over the years.
With that in mind, please know a tremendous amount of thought went into
the decision as we bring the new vision for Downtown Disney to life. As
we look to the future, we are excited about the evolution that will
occur over the next two years, introducing a brand new mix of shopping,
dining and other experiences for our Guests' enjoyment.

Our Guests' feedback, as well as their continued enthusiasm for our
products and services, are very important to us. We genuinely
appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts with us.

And I got back:

Thank you for contacting the Walt Disney World Resort.

Although we understand your disappointment with our recent announcement
regarding the clubs on Pleasure Island, please know a tremendous amount
of thought went into the decision to bring the bold new vision for
Downtown Disney to life. Taking the Downtown Disney experience to the
next level is consistent with our commitment to provide our Guests with
new, exciting and one-of-a-kind experiences. As we look to the future,
we are excited about the evolution that will occur over the next two
years, introducing a brand new mix of shopping, dining and other
experiences for our Guests' enjoyment.

Our Guests' feedback, as well as their continued enthusiasm for our
products and services, are very important to us. We genuinely
appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts with us.

Close to identical.


BobK/Orlando