You know what I’m going to say.
Today, Disney announced a new venture: Storyliving. So what is is? Well, they describe it as:
…vibrant new neighborhoods that are infused with the Company’s special brand of magic. These master-planned communities are intended to inspire residents to foster new friendships, pursue their interests and write the next exciting chapter in their lives—all while enjoying the attention to detail, unique amenities and special touches that are Disney hallmarks.
The first of these communities, named Cotino, will be built in California’s Coachella Valley, specifically Rancho Mirage. The location is significant, as Walt Disney himself owned a home there. And they’re planning more locations for the future.
“For nearly 100 years, Disney has shared stories that have touched the hearts and minds of people all around the world,” said Josh D’Amaro, chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. “As we prepare to enter our second century, we are developing new and exciting ways to bring the magic of Disney to people wherever they are, expanding storytelling to storyliving. We can’t wait to welcome residents to these beautiful and unique Disney communities where they can live their lives to the fullest.”
These communities will have neighborhoods for those 55+ as well. In addition to being staffed by employees trained in Disney’s guest services, they’ll also have a number of “curated experiences” via a voluntary club membership, including wellness programming, entertainment ranging from live performances to cooking classes, philanthropic endeavors, and seminars, among other things. That membership also provides access to “waterfront clubhouse, a club-only beach area and recreational water activities, as well as Disney programming, entertainment and activities throughout the year.”
In addition, because this is Disney,there are also plans for a mixed-use district for shopping, dining, entertainment, as well as “a beachfront hotel and a professionally managed beach park with recreational water activities that can be accessed by the public through the purchase of a day pass.”
So now we come to what was alluded to in the subheading. This isn’t the first time Disney has attempted to get into real estate development. The most famous, of course, was Epcot; Walt’s dream city of the future. Those familiar know that there were massive pros and cons to that plan. Among the pros were, well, things that modern cities still don’t have even 60 years later; multiple levels for traffic leaving a large pedestrian space, green technology, the utmost in conveniences, among others. The cons, of course, were that it was incredibly rigid, and the power for the entire thing was centralized on Walt himself, such that when he dies the whole thing basically fell through and the company had to figure out what to do with 27,000 acres of Florida swamp land. They made Walt Disney World.
Originally, the concept for Epcot came from a city for artists Walt conceptualized, then grew and grew and grew. And the intention for Storyliving seems to follow a similar bead to that original concept, seeing as it’s meant to foster the development of friendships and the pursuit of interests. Of course, I’ve already seen a number of people react to Storyliving by immediately drawing a parallel to Bioshock, so it’s all sort of a 50/50.
Storyliving seems to take a middleground that, to me at least, isn’t terribly appealing. On the plus side, it actually has a plan for retirees, you’ll actually own your home there, it has Disney’s guest services, and the governance isn’t constrained to a single person. On the other hand, it seems to be mostly devoid of the futurism Walt himself was so fond of (despite the spaces being developed by Imagineers), and it’s incredibly hard not to be wary of it. Mostly because they tried it all again in the 90’s with Celebration, Florida, and, well, oh boy… lets just say these concepts never really do well after their first encounter with real people. It’s hard not to imagine a similar arc, but who knows?
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