What in the World?

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A weekly peek at Walt Disney World

Monday, January 29, 2007
Glenn Sonoda

Located south of Walt Disney World, the town of Celebration is another development achievement produced by the Walt Disney Company.  This article will look at Celebration’s beginnings, its philosophy, and some of its distinctive touches that only the Walt Disney Company could come up with.  It is just the beginning.  In future articles, we will dive deeper into the history and operation of Celebration, and perhaps examine some of the criticism this town has received for over a decade. 

Many say the story begins where it usually does, with Walt Disney.  Before his death, Walt Disney was working on a unique vision that would come to life near the small town of Orlando, Florida: EPCOT, or, Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow.  In Walt’s own words, “I don't believe there's a challenge anywhere in the world that's more important to people everywhere than finding solutions to the problems of our cities. But where do we
begin . . . how do we start answering this great challenge?  Well, we're convinced we must start answering the public need.  And the need is for starting from scratch on virgin land and building a special kind of new community that will always be in a state of becoming.  It will never cease to be a living blueprint of the future, where people actually live a life they can't find anywhere else in the world.” Unfortunately, Walt never saw his dream fulfilled. 

The original concept of EPCOT proved beyond the grasp of the Walt Disney Company after Walt Disney's death.  According to an interview with the Orlando Sentinel, Disney archivist David Smith said, “The Company really didn't know how to proceed with EPCOT - it was such a new idea . . . but they knew how to build a Magic Kingdom, so they did that.”  While the Company’s vision of EPCOT Center came to fruition in 1982, it still lacked a true community feeling to it that Walt had wanted.

Walt’s dream finally began to take shape when planning for a new and innovative town called “Celebration” began in the late 1980s.  The Walt Disney Company decided it had enough land for such a project and started to plan what would become a multi-billion dollar project.  The starting point was to study what little Walt Disney had detailed for EPCOT.   In addition, planners held consumer focus groups and took trips to study cities that they wanted to emulate. They also met with architects, planners and experts who helped design Celebration's school, its health campus and a variety of other community programs.

Celebration was founded in 1994 on 5,000 acres of Disney property in northwest Osceola County, south of U.S. Highway 192.  What was unveiled was a “pedestrian community” that reflects a Southeastern town from pre-World War II (known as the New Urbanism movement).   Homes, many with front porches, sit on narrow lots close to the street with garages facing back alleys, with the aim of promoting neighborly interaction and creating a friendly place to live.  Houses in Celebration are built in six architectural styles: classical, Victorian, Colonial revival, coastal, Mediterranean and French.  In addition, estate homes, village homes, townhomes, cottage homes, garden homes, bungalow homes, terrace homes, and apartments are available for potential residents interested in moving to Celebration.  The style and sizes of homes are mixed throughout town, as there are streets of large homes right next to streets of small homes. 

Celebration is a departure from Walt Disney's vision of building a place for people to live, work, and play, because many Celebration residents work outside of the community and are dependent on their cars.  Despite this fact, the town emphasizes parks and sidewalks, and many homes are only one mile away from downtown.  In addition, there are over a dozen miles of footpaths and trails that allow many residents to walk to schools and downtown.  Cars play a secondary role in Celebration.  This is further evidenced by the fact that car garages are behind the home itself, and are not visible from the street.  The idea of pedestrian-friendly city planning came directly from Walt Disney himself. 

Walt Disney also planned to build links with private industry to bring new technology and products to EPCOT.  In Celebration, those links take the form of corporate alliances and partnerships in everything from building products and high-tech communications equipment to education and health care.  For example, Segway scooters and small electric cars called “NEVs” (Neighborhood Electric Vehicle) are common through Celebration.  Additionally, residents have access to a range of telecommunications and interactive services.

Celebration is still a growing and evolving town.  In 1995, all that existed were roads and a preview center for people who were interested in buying into Celebration.  After a lottery was held, 351 home lots were the first to be sold.  On June 18, 1996, the first residents moved into their new homes.  Now, the town includes: a school, named Celebration School; a hospital, called Celebration Health, which is owned and operated the Florida Hospital Health System; a fire station which is operated by the Osceola Fire and Rescue District; and an eighteen-hole golf course.  Finally, what is unique about Celebration (especially nowadays), is that Celebration is not a gated community.  In fact, the downtown area depends on revenue from curious tourists that make their way through town.

Unlike what some people think, living in Celebration does not give residents special perks at Walt Disney World.  Residents do not receive free passes, discounts, or special treatment in the World.  In actuality, Disney employees receive the discounts from businesses throughout Celebration (and in and around Orlando) in order to attract business from the large number of Disney employees. 

As you can see, Celebration is not your ordinary town.  With an interesting history, the town of Celebration was developed into a community that is one of a kind.  But this is just the beginning of the discussion.  In my next column, I will examine more of how Celebration is governed and discuss the criticisms some have voiced about the town that a mouse built.  If you have any questions or comments, please leave them here, or email glenn@studioscentral.com.  See you next time!