Pruning Carnation Plaza Gardens makes room for future growth at Disneyland

Jim Hill

13 years ago

As any good gardener will tell you, Fall is a great time to
prune.

Why For? Because once the leaves are off the tree, you can
actually see what you’re doing. More to the point, flowering plants that are
pruned back in the autumn usually experience vigorous regrowth the following
spring.

Photo by Noe Valladolid

So taking that info into consideration … I guess it’s kind
of appropriate that – sometime later this Fall – the construction walls will go
up around Carnation Plaza Gardens. So that this portion of Disneyland Park can
then be reimagined as Fantasy Faire, a new storybook village square that will
— in effect – bump out the borders of Fantasyland. And thus (the Imagineers
hope, anyway) reinvigorate this theme park’s Hub area.

Oh, I know, I know. Whenever a band is performing on Plaza
Gardens Stage and the swing dancers are cutting loose, this corner of
Disneyland can get pretty lively. But let’s be honest here: How often was that
actually happening these days?

Photo by Noe Valladolid

Truth be told, this primo piece of property — right at the
center of Disneyland Park — stands empty 99% of the time, completely under-utilized.
And given how little inside-the-berm real
estate the Imagineers currently have to work with when it comes to expanding
this theme park’s roster of rides, it’s kind of surprising that Carnation Plaza
Gardens has stayed in business for as long as it has.

And in a weird sort of way, it’s entirely appropriate that –
given this outdoor entertainment venue officially opened its doors on August
18, 1956 – that Thomas Staggs, Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts,
announced on August 19, 2011 that Carnation Plaza Gardens would soon be shuttering.
55 years and a day. That’s a pretty impressive run, don’t you think?

More to the point, given that Staggs and George Kalogridis
(i.e. President of the Disneyland Resort) promised D23 EXPO attendees that –
once night falls on Fantasy Faire – the swing dancers would be welcomed back to
this part of the theme park. So that they can once again cut a rug to the big
bands which will still be performing on the Fantasy Faire Stage, rather than
the Carnation Plaza Gardens Stage.

Besides, if you’re familiar with the layout of Carnation
Plaza Gardens, you’re going to find that this reimagined corner of Disneyland
looks an awful lot like the part of this theme park that Fantasy Faire
replaced. In that the Fantasy Faire Stage will pretty much occupy …

… the exact same spot where the Carnation Plaza Gardens Stage
now sits on.

Photo by Noe Valladolid

More to the point, if you’re used to taking that short cut between
Frontierland and Fantasyland (You know the one that I’m taking about? Which takes
you right by Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante‘s restrooms? Which can be found
behind that blue set of double doors in the photo below) …

Photo by Noe Valladolid

That short cut will still be there once the Imagineers
finish reinventing Disneyland’s Carnations Plaza Gardens area. Only in this
future version of that theme park, the Rancho del Zocalo Restaurante’s
restrooms will now be located between the Fantasy Faire Theatre and Royal
Princess Hall.

As for the Carnation Plaza Gardens’ outdoor dining area (which
used to support one of Disneyland’s quick service restaurants) …

Photo by Noe Valladolid

… this will soon be replaced by Tangled Tower, an iconic sculpture
inspired by that 2010 Walt Disney Pictures release. This will also be the area
where Disneyland visitors will be invited (several times daily) to take part in
the Royal Ribbon Festival. Which is when these Guests will then get the chance
to join a Disney Princess and her royal
court attendants in a dancing celebration.

Alright. I know. There are a number of JHM readers who are genuinely
upset with the Imagineers’ plans for the Carnations Plaza Gardens area. If only
because this means that yet another corner of this theme park is now being used
to support / promote a set of Disney characters and/or franchise.

Which is the exact same problem that some people are having
with the works that’s now being done on Disneyland’s old Plaza Pavilion
restaurant …

Photo by Noe Valladolid

… which – after an extensive rehab – will re-open for
business in January of 2012 as a new Mary Poppins-themed eatery, the Jolly
Holiday Bakery Café.

Photo by Noe Valladolid

But here’s the thing: Though theme purists may squawk
whenever a classic Disneyland attraction like Tomorrowland‘s Submarine Voyage
is then reimagined as a character-heavy show like the Finding Nemo Submarine
Voyage, the fact of the matter is that Disney’s assortment of characters is one
of the main reasons that many Guests make that drive down the 5 to Anaheim.

I mean, Knott’s Berry Farm has rides too.
And Universal Studios Hollywood has shows as well. But only Disneyland has
Mickey Mouse & the Disney Princesses & Mary Poppins.

Photo by Noe Valladolid

And given that “Mary Poppins” featured that memorable-tea-party-with-the-penguins
scene during its chalk-painting sequence, the folks who work in Food &
Beverage are hoping that a new Main Street, U.S.A. eatery which features
occasional appearances by the Poppins characters will be very, very
popular with Disneyland visitors. Which is why construction crews are basically
gutting the Plaza Pavilion …

Photo by Noe Valladolid

… taking this place back to the bare walls. So that yet
another under-utilized corner of Disneyland can then be turned into a brand-new
themed environment that the Guests will be eager to experience. Which (again,
the Imagineers are hoping) will help reinvigorate this theme park’s Hub area.

More to the point, by moving Fantasyland’s Fantasy Faire to
Disneyland’s Carnation Plaza Gardens area and by moving Main Street, U.S.A. ‘s
bakery up towards the center of this theme park … Well, that then frees up
other parts of the canvas.

Photo by Noe Valladolid

And trust me, folks. Once Cars Land opens and work on the
Buena Vista Street section of Disney California Adventure is completed in 2012,
the Imagineers will then be turning their attention back to Disneyland Park.
With their main goal being to find new ways to increase the capacity of this 56
year-old theme park.

“And where is WDI thinking of possibly building some rides,
shows and attractions for Disneyland (which will then help increase this theme
park’s capacity)?,” you ask. Well, the way I hear it, the three areas inside-of-the-Berm
that are currently being considered for future expansion are:

The site of Fantasyland’s old Motor Boat Cruise
The Hunchback of Notre Dame Festival of Fools (which is located out behind Big
Thunder Ranch Barbecue)
The current location of Fantasy Faire

Now I know that building a new attraction on top of
Disneyland’s old Motor Boat Cruise might seem highly unlikely. Especially when
you consider all of the logistics involved / all of the construction challenges.

But know this: As early as 1988, the Imagineers were seriously
talking about significantly simplifying the route of both the Monorail &
PeopleMover. So that the corner where Tomorrowland & Fantasyland meet could
then become home to the Little Mermaid‘s Village. Which was to have been a
whole new “land” at this theme park which would have then become home to an
early, early iteration of “The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure.”

But that’s a story for another time here at JHM. For now …
Well, I’m wondering how your folks genuinely feel about Disneyland’s new
Fantasy Faire area as well as the Jolly Holiday Bakery Café.

Do you think that these upcoming additions to the Hub will actually help reinvigorate
this part of that theme park? Or do you feel that removing the seldom-used Carnation
Plaza Gardens and the long-shuttered Plaza Pavilion restaurant will have a
lasting impact on Disneyland’s charm.

Your thoughts?

Special thanks to Noe
Valladolid for providing many of the images that were used to illustrate today’s article.