Darkbeer
04-19-2003, 02:03 PM
OK, this is going to be a gripe post, so if you are not interested in hearing some of the negative, then skip this post!
Dear Disney, why have the standards changed???
OK, last summer you decided (with help from your legal department), to close off the Castle Rock section of Tom Sawyer's Island. Now, even though it had about 40 years worth of kids (of all ages) playing in and around the rock, and caves without a serious injury, you felt there was a liability issue. Now, I personally think this is overkill, yes a few kids got some scrapes, but heck, kids gets scrapes everyday. Heck, how many kids fall down in the parking structure, and get a scrap on their knee from the rough concrete??? Anyways, you made a decision, so be it, it is yours to make.
So, you know that you are planning to close down the Rivers of America for about three months, in fact, last year, you had folks go out and decide what to do with the rock (and we knew, because you used spray paint to write words like "remove", "fill", etc.), that was a "bit" of bad show, but mostly it was only the people on the upper decks of the Mark Twain that saw it. I can accept that as a necessary evil to prepare for the rehab.
So, you close down the island in January, and start to work on lots of things to do, you did fix the Suspension bridge, and re-built the stairs (The kid in me says Thanks!), and you brought back a Keel Boat as a prop along the river, which is a nice touch.
But why did you not work on Castle Rock when the Rivers were closed, and you had all those walls up? Yes, I know that people did find ways to see behind the walls, but for the most part, you didn't have to see the work, unless you wanted to.
For some reason you decided to not work on a segment of the island that you knew needed to be addressed months before the rehab?
Now, we have this MAJOR "bad show", you reopen the river, bring back the river craft, and now you get to see the work,, the piles of dirt, wood, construction equipment, etc...
Now, yes, you placed a few green walls along the edge of the river, but the rock is located on a raised part of the island!
Heck, just walking around Critter Country you can see the work...
Let alone if you ride a river craft!
Talk about ruining the "magic"!
You know, that many folks complain that DCA lakes berms and other structures to keep the outside views for that park, I thought you might have heard their opinions...
I can understand when you need to make an emergency repair (even though much of that used to be done after closing, but you have decided to do a lot more of the work during the day, and while I preferred the old policy, you usually have tried to keep the distraction down to a minimum).
But what were you thinking here, a lot of lead time before you needed to start the project, and you knew what needed to be done around the island. Did you not have enough CM's and contractors? So, why didn't you hire more, or place the project out to bid if you couldn't do it yourself. (And it seems you have been in favor of closing down segments of the staff (such as the old in-house parade float makers) and replacing them with outside companies...
But for what ever reason, you decided NOT to start the Castle Rock rehab until just before the Rivers were refilled, and now we have a major ugly distraction in the middle of the Rivers of America!
So thanks for the planning and forethought, and for your caring about the guests experience:rolleyes:
Sigh, it used to be that Disney meant better than other options, going the extra step, but lately, your actions don't show it (but maybe you guys really like watching the Direct-to-Video sequels, and think they help show that Disney means quality).
But of course, I guess it would have had a higher priority if it was the Castle Rock "store".
Also, way to go for NOT fixing the Burning Cabin, maybe we will get this back for the 50th, as I still have some hope in Disney... but how this was handled didn't help in that department, at all!
Dear Disney, why have the standards changed???
OK, last summer you decided (with help from your legal department), to close off the Castle Rock section of Tom Sawyer's Island. Now, even though it had about 40 years worth of kids (of all ages) playing in and around the rock, and caves without a serious injury, you felt there was a liability issue. Now, I personally think this is overkill, yes a few kids got some scrapes, but heck, kids gets scrapes everyday. Heck, how many kids fall down in the parking structure, and get a scrap on their knee from the rough concrete??? Anyways, you made a decision, so be it, it is yours to make.
So, you know that you are planning to close down the Rivers of America for about three months, in fact, last year, you had folks go out and decide what to do with the rock (and we knew, because you used spray paint to write words like "remove", "fill", etc.), that was a "bit" of bad show, but mostly it was only the people on the upper decks of the Mark Twain that saw it. I can accept that as a necessary evil to prepare for the rehab.
So, you close down the island in January, and start to work on lots of things to do, you did fix the Suspension bridge, and re-built the stairs (The kid in me says Thanks!), and you brought back a Keel Boat as a prop along the river, which is a nice touch.
But why did you not work on Castle Rock when the Rivers were closed, and you had all those walls up? Yes, I know that people did find ways to see behind the walls, but for the most part, you didn't have to see the work, unless you wanted to.
For some reason you decided to not work on a segment of the island that you knew needed to be addressed months before the rehab?
Now, we have this MAJOR "bad show", you reopen the river, bring back the river craft, and now you get to see the work,, the piles of dirt, wood, construction equipment, etc...
Now, yes, you placed a few green walls along the edge of the river, but the rock is located on a raised part of the island!
Heck, just walking around Critter Country you can see the work...
Let alone if you ride a river craft!
Talk about ruining the "magic"!
You know, that many folks complain that DCA lakes berms and other structures to keep the outside views for that park, I thought you might have heard their opinions...
I can understand when you need to make an emergency repair (even though much of that used to be done after closing, but you have decided to do a lot more of the work during the day, and while I preferred the old policy, you usually have tried to keep the distraction down to a minimum).
But what were you thinking here, a lot of lead time before you needed to start the project, and you knew what needed to be done around the island. Did you not have enough CM's and contractors? So, why didn't you hire more, or place the project out to bid if you couldn't do it yourself. (And it seems you have been in favor of closing down segments of the staff (such as the old in-house parade float makers) and replacing them with outside companies...
But for what ever reason, you decided NOT to start the Castle Rock rehab until just before the Rivers were refilled, and now we have a major ugly distraction in the middle of the Rivers of America!
So thanks for the planning and forethought, and for your caring about the guests experience:rolleyes:
Sigh, it used to be that Disney meant better than other options, going the extra step, but lately, your actions don't show it (but maybe you guys really like watching the Direct-to-Video sequels, and think they help show that Disney means quality).
But of course, I guess it would have had a higher priority if it was the Castle Rock "store".
Also, way to go for NOT fixing the Burning Cabin, maybe we will get this back for the 50th, as I still have some hope in Disney... but how this was handled didn't help in that department, at all!