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80S ERA
08-15-2001, 02:17 PM
I remember a while back Disney was looking into building a Disney Seas in Long Beach along with the Westcot project.

Does anyone have any further info or links to "what might have been?" I'm curious to see any concept art or descriptions of the place. The only artist rendering I saw of the proposed LBDS was a picture of Eisner's beloved Paradise Pier :mad: . What kind of resemblance did it have to TDS?

DisneylandKid
08-15-2001, 03:54 PM
Click here. (http://members.tripod.com/~savehorizons/dissea.htm)

Corith
08-15-2001, 04:03 PM
I heard rumors that Disney pulled out of the Long Beach Seas beacause they tried milking Disney for too much. Granted these were only rumors, but some of the things I heard was that LB wanted Disney to pay for increasing the width of the 710 its entire length and paying for an additional parking structure for regualr city use.

DisneyFreak2000
08-15-2001, 04:12 PM
Weren't they going to expand the Monorail all the way down to Long Beach or something for the project?

Corith
08-15-2001, 04:15 PM
Now that you mention it, I heard something to that effect. I heard that disney was going to build the monorail connecting both parks, and let it be used for rapid transit with some stops between Anahiem and Long Beach. I don't know if thats what LB wanted, or Disney offered.

TokyoInsider
08-15-2001, 04:33 PM
I seem to recall another reason why Long Beach DisneySea was 'sunk' (pun intended) was because the environmental impact study showed that the landfilling necessary to create the park would seriously endanger some wildlife in the area. Also, wasn't there a vote by local citizens rejecting it as well?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe at that time, Disney also owned a portion of the Queen Mary, and wanted to develop DisneySea around it.

Gandalf
08-15-2001, 05:44 PM
Originally posted by TokyoInsider
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe at that time, Disney also owned a portion of the Queen Mary, and wanted to develop DisneySea around it.

That sounds like it would have been an interesting place to check out if it had been built by Disney. Any info on whether or not the Long Beach Aquarium will survive? I had read somewhere that it was struggling.

MMFan
08-15-2001, 06:32 PM
TokyoInsider wrote: I seem to recall another reason why Long Beach DisneySea was 'sunk' (pun intended) was because the environmental impact study showed that the landfilling necessary to create the park would seriously endanger some wildlife in the area.

I believe the bigger problem involved the expense of the landfill. There were estimates the cost per acre would have been at least $1 million, and no way was WDC going to pay such a huge sum (over $200 million for the land alone, of about 200 acres) for a theme park.

BTW, if you're the person who's been providing MP with the photos of TDS, a big thanks. But having to wait for the next installment of your pics is like watching one of those TV shows where the viewer sees the words "tune in to next weeks show when..." immediately after a cliff-hanging ending. But MP's multi-days coverage of TDS is the first time I've clicked on MP and not been disappointed to see no updates on DL or DCA.

Doodle Duck
08-15-2001, 06:42 PM
MMFAN...Ain't THAT the truth! BUT..Mr. Al...you are not off the hook for that WDI update, sensitive or not...we're waiting patiently...diversions not withstanding. :D

80S ERA
08-16-2001, 07:00 AM
Thanks Disneylandkid.

I never heard about a monorail connecting the parks or land having to be filled. Seems like it would have been a HUGE project.

Some of the ideas for the park (detailed in Disneylandkid's link) seem rather far-fetched - Similar to how Walt's ideas were perceived in 1955?

Maybe Disney never had intended to build the project, but instead used it as a slick business tactic to drive their stock up and for negotiating power against the city of Anaheim...

----------

City of Anaheim: "Your asking too much, Mr. Eisner. The state and our city cannot pick up that much of the tab.."

EISNER: "Paul, get the city of Long Beach on the phone please."

City of Anaheim: "Wait! Wait! How did you want it done again?"

:D

mousecat
08-16-2001, 07:56 AM
The City of Long Beach tried to soak Disney? Try the other way around. Disney wanted Long Beach to fill in 230 acres, build significant infrastructure improvements, and provide the City with other benefits. The reason they expanded in Anaheim was due to that City floating up to $684 million in bonds to pay for the streetscapes, freeway improvements, and the parking garage ($100 million). Typically, a city will get revenue from the parking (look at Old Pasadena as an example). However, Anaheim doesn't make a dime. They built it and handed it over to Disney.

80S ERA
08-16-2001, 08:38 AM
Umm... never mind. (edited post)