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Disney In Hawaii |
Fres-tiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 11, 2007
Posts: 109
From: Fresno, CA
|  Posted: 2007-10-04 01:12 am Permalink
Saw this from the Associated Press tonight...
Quote:
| Disney plans to build a family resort in Hawaii,but it won't be an island Disneyland.
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts announced today that it has bought 21 acres of oceanfront property on the western side of Oahu. It will use to build an 800-room hotel complex.
The resort will be Disney's first without a nearby theme park.
Disney Chairman Jay Rasulo says it will emphasize family-centered vacations while respecting Hawaii's culture.
Disney spent 144 million dollars to buy the land at the Ko Olina
development. The planned Disney complex is being called the Ko Olina Family Resort.
Construction of the resort is expected to begin next year, with opening set for 2011. |
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VampiressRN
Grand Member (5 years) 
Joined: Nov 23, 2006
Posts: 5079
From: Sin City Lincoln Hills (NorCal)
| Posted: 2007-10-04 05:30 am Permalink
Thanks for that info...sounds interesting...wonder if they will have an Enchanted Tiki Room?
Video Announcement
From the Honolulu Advertiser...
Disney unveils plans for 800-room Oahu resort
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Staff Writer
Walt Disney Parks & Resorts plans to break ground next year for a stand-alone luxury resort built on 21 acres at Ko Olina that the company is purchasing for $144 million.
Jay Rasulo, chairman of Disney parks and resorts, said this is the first mixed-use family resort outside of its theme park developments.
Rasulo provided initial details at a news conference in the fifth-floor state Capitol office of Gov. Linda Lingle. He said the resort is expected to open in 2011 and provide 1,000 jobs. He said the company plans to build a Hawaiian-themed family resort.
"We are looking forward to building a special family resort that honors the cultural diversity of Hawai'i and reflects the spirit of aloha that makes this location so unique," Rasulo said. Disney characters Lilo and Stitch — from the animated film of the same name — made the trip from the Magic Kingdom with Rasulo.
He said Hawai'i already is a very popular destination for members of its Vacation Club, the growing Disney time-share condominium developments and will provide "another way to visit a place that they've loved for many years with a brand they trust."
He said the 800 units will include both hotel rooms and villas for the resort and time-share.
"As the crossroads of Asia, it is your diverse culture that makes this place so special. we look forward to building a family resort that honors the spirit of aloha and welcomes guests from all over the world," Rasulo said.
The property is next to one of the man-made lagoons built in the Ko Olina area on the diamondhead side of J.W. Marriott's Ihilani resort.
The Disney resort will be built on the big bright-green field where the NFL Pro Bowl players have practiced in recent years. "There are absolutely no plans for a theme park," Rasulo said.
Lingle said the project fits well with Hawai'i's reputation as a family destination. "The Disney name brings that to everyone's mind, front and center," she said.
"We both have names that we want to protect," Lingle said. " It is in both of our interests and it plays to our strengths."
Lingle said the resort amounts to "a very courageous decision, one that can have tremendous social impact."
She said the project will add jobs and help the community. The Leeward Coast community has struggled with economic issues that include a shortage of affordable housing and a growing homeless population living on the beaches.
Rasulo said Disney operates 36 resorts around the world. "This project will tell a Hawaiian story," he said.
Wai'anae Coast community leader William Aila said the Disney group hosted a lunch with him and other community and cultural leaders after the formal announcement at the state Capitol.
He said they invited corporate executives, political leaders and cultural practitioners to share a meal at a Chinese restaurant in Waikiki and learn about their conceptual design for the resort, which has been under wraps until yesterday.
Aila said the Disney executives talked about honoring culturally appropriate concepts. "I think if they stick to Walt Disney's vision of these sort of theme resorts bringing hope and telling the indigenous story, they'll be fine," he said.
But he said the community will need to see that commitment. "If they stray far from that, there could be problems with the development as it goes on, he said.
As a native Hawaiian, Aila said he asked some very pointed questions, but got generally good answers and an open attitude about the process. "I felt positive," he said.
Ko Olina master developer Jeff Stone, who has seen other proposed partners come and go, said he was elated by the news. "It's a dream come true," he said.
"I grew up in Burbank and Walt Disney was my idol," Stone said. "I think it's a perfect fit for the community. I think they're sensitive and I think they know exactly what needs to be done."
He noted that the project would not use the tax credit that he had requested from the state Legislature to help spur the construction of a long-planned aquarium.
"I think it's going to fulfill all the promises that I made to the legislators," he said. Since the development won't use the tax credit, "it makes it even more exciting because we could hopefully reallocate that tax credit to the things we need it for, affordable housing, work force."
For residents not likely to work at the hotel or stay there, Stone says there will be another benefit — increased public access to the beachfront and man-made lagoons. "It will actually increase public access, make it easier for everyone to come and have a great time."
He said the resort already provides more than 200 free parking stalls and this development will add parking.
City Council member Todd Apo, who represents the area and works for Ko Olina, said the project appeals in many ways. He noted Disney's reputation as a firm dedicated to training and helping the community.
As current budget chairman of the Council, Apo said the prospect of a spike in property taxes looks promising as well. He said this kind of development should help in the larger plan of nurturing Kapolei as a secondary urban center or "creating the true second city."
Lingle said she welcomes Disney for the hotel and all its other companies: Touchstone Films, ABC, and other elements.
State tourism liaison Marsha Wienert said the Disney announcement should be a good fit. "To bring the name of Disney to the destination elevates that brand and image as a family destination," she said.
With more and more families traveling together, Wienert said that's an important and growing tourism trend.
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[ This Message was edited by: VampiressRN 2007-10-04 05:35 ]
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bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 10557
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2007-10-04 06:08 am Permalink
Wow. Just because of its name, Disney will have to walk a tight rope of political correctness on that one. I don't think we are gonna see one Tiki there. They are gonna be watched with hawk eyes by all the native interest groups, and any missteps will be treated in a most unforgiving manner.
While I personally would like to see the re-occurrence of Polynesian pop on the islands, I would not put myself behind Disney as a facilitator of it, they have lost their way.
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disneykoolina
Member
Joined: Oct 05, 2007
Posts: 1
From: Beach Villa
| Posted: 2007-10-05 2:43 pm Permalink
We purchased a Condo in Ko Olina two years ago that will be open in April of 2008. Construction takes a long time.
I setup a site called www.disneykoolina.com to advertise our condo. I hope that fact that Disney will be our next door neighbor will make our property values go up!
We may end up purchasing DVC points also so that we will be able to enjoy the giant pool structure that will be installed. We will have three pools at the Beach Villa but the pools at disney look like they are millions of gallons!
The Disney Ko Olina Resort layout is as follows, think of a square piece of land. One side of the square is the beach, the other three sides all have tall vertical hotel structures in a horseshoe shape around the perimiter. Inside of the horseshoe will be a giant pool structure and everything will look out over it towards the beach. It's going to be pretty cool.
I am old surfer who grew up in Haleiwa. The Ko Olina resort is turning out very nice. I remember when I was younger when the lagoons were there in Ko Olina without any buildings. It was really peaceful.
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Phillip Roberts
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 09, 2003
Posts: 1486
From: OAHU, Hawaii.
| Posted: 2007-10-08 2:46 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2007-10-04 05:30, VampiressRN wrote:
Aila said the Disney executives talked about honoring culturally appropriate concepts. "I think if they stick to Walt Disney's vision of these sort of theme resorts bringing hope and telling the indigenous story, they'll be fine," he said.
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[ This Message was edited by: filslash 2008-09-20 15:53 ]
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Hinano_Paul
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jul 22, 2006
Posts: 211
From: Orange, Ca.
| Posted: 2007-10-08 5:49 pm Permalink
Mrs. Lurker and I were there when this was announced. The images I saw were sweet, like a giant tiki room resort. But after the announcement and for the rest of last week the local news was interviewing locals for their take on this resort. It was 50/50 most though not wanting to see something in that location, so I am very interested to see how this unfolds in the future. I'm already trying to convince the Mrs. to make the 2011 trip even if we cannot get a room there at least be able to scour the grounds.
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Kahuna Kent
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Aug 19, 2007
Posts: 78
From: Woodland Hills, Ca
| Posted: 2008-02-10 08:00 am Permalink
This picture was in Disney's 2007 Annual Report
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mymotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 18, 2007
Posts: 454
From: Bellingham WA
| Posted: 2008-02-10 3:14 pm Permalink
If it looks like that I might go.
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irishf
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Aug 19, 2007
Posts: 97
From: Athens, Georgia
| Posted: 2008-02-10 5:34 pm Permalink
I wonder how native Hawaiians can even afford to live on the island anymore. Trump, now Disney...I hope Oahu doesn't turn into one huge, sterilized, plastic mall. For example, Waikiki...Much as I enjoy Waikiki, I don't think it's really representative of true life there. The locals I know there say they avoid Waikiki like the plague.
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dangergirl299
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: Feb 18, 2003
Posts: 893
From: Bay Area
| Posted: 2008-02-11 11:40 am Permalink
Don't all expensive Hawaiian resorts look like that?
In my experience they do.
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Bongo Bungalow
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Aug 20, 2007
Posts: 1226
From: Indiana
| Posted: 2008-02-11 6:09 pm Permalink
Mmmm... Mrs. Bungalow and I are going to plan a trip to Hawaii. (In other words, no planning done yet, but we will go.) I don't think I'd want to go to a Disney resort. It wouldn't feel right. Disney's whole thing is to create the illusion of a location... we want the "real" thing. So we are fooling ourselves, right? What is the real thing in Hawaii?
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VanTiki
Grand Member (5 years)
Joined: Nov 25, 2005
Posts: 901
From: Hawaii
| Posted: 2008-02-12 10:53 am Permalink
Quote:
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On 2008-02-11 18:09, Bongo Bungalow wrote:
What is the real thing in Hawaii?
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This is the moment where I shamelessly plug my parents lovely Bed and Breakfast 
http://www.akamaibnb.com
Mahalo!
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Tiki Shark Art
Grand Member (6 years) 
Joined: Aug 31, 2006
Posts: 2753
From: The volcanic Big Island of Hawaii
| Posted: 2008-05-15 5:06 pm Permalink
There has been one new design element added to the new Disney resort on Oahu...
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Unga Bunga
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jun 06, 2003
Posts: 5734
From: CaliTikifornia
| Posted: 2008-05-15 10:28 pm Permalink
Quote:
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On 2008-05-15 17:06, Tiki Shark Art wrote:
There has been one new design element added to the new Disney resort on Oahu...
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Pissed off natives?
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blindy the pirate
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 21, 2008
Posts: 160
From: Tallahassee FL
| Posted: 2008-05-16 05:59 am Permalink
The funny part is Disney hasn't had a decent imaginative idea for a hotel since the Polynesian Resort at WDW.
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