Saturday, January 3, 2009

DCA expansion timeline

Here is a timeline for the expansion of Disney's California Adventure which will be completed by 2012. Projects will include Buena Vista Street (replacing Sunshine Plaza), a Victorian retheming of Paradise Pier, and a new section taking up what's left of the original Disneyland parking lot called Cars Land (opening 2012).

October 17, 2007: Disney announced that there will be a major expansion for Disney's California Adventure.

March 30, 2008: The Seasons of the Vines attraction closes down in the Golden State section of the park to make room for a preview center showing what's coming up at DCA in the next several years.

June 17, 2008: Toy Story Midway Mania opens, thus beginning the Victorian retheme for Paradise Pier.

September 2, 2008: The Burger Invasion restaurant closes down.

September 7, 2008: Golden Dreams in the Golden State section of the park closes down to make room for the Little Mermaid: Ariel's Adventure. The former building will be transferred from Golden State to Paradise Pier.

October 14, 2008: Sun Wheel closes for its retheme to Mickey's Fun Wheel.

October 20, 2008: Blue Sky Cellar, the preview center that replaced the Seasons of the Vines attraction, opens.

October 27, 2008: The Burger Invasion sign has been removed. All cars have been removed on Sun Wheel.

October 31, 2008: The Paradise Pier lagoon began draining for World of Color. Refurbishment on Games of the Boardwalk began.

November 21, 2008: Draining for the Paradise Pier lagoon finishes. The queue cover for Sun Wheel is removed.

December 16, 2008: Repainting of the former Sun Wheel begins.

December 31, 2008: Removal of the sun face begins with the removal of the mouth and eyes.

January 3, 2009: The queue clearing stage on Sun Wheel is complete.

January 4, 2009: The cheeks, and eyebrows of the sun face are removed thus finishing the removal of the sun face of the Sun Wheel. The back of the sun face is fully repainted bright yellow.

January 12, 2009 - The background of the sun face has been removed.

January 16, 2009 - They have dug in the old Paradise Pier lagoon.

January 26, 2009 - Construction walls have gone up across from Golden Dreams, where the viewing area for WOC will be.

January 27, 2009 - The old Sun Wheel has turned. Work on the base of Silly Symphony Swings begins. Orange Stinger is still open.

February 16, 2009 - Work on the seating area for World of Color begins. Both ears from the Mickey head at California Screamin are removed.

February 20, 2009 - Holes have been dug for the sound towers for World of Color. The foundation has been dug for Silly Symphony Swings.

March 2, 2009 - The front legs for Mickey's Fun Wheel have been painted black.

March 9, 2009 - Work on the stage for World of Color begins. They have completed repainting the old Sun Wheel. Painting begins on the railings on the queue. The facades for the Games of the Boardwalk are painted.

Macrh 12, 2009 - Letters reading "Paradise Pier" have gone up.

March 20, 2009 - The bogies for the swinging cars have gone up for Fun Wheel. The back legas for Mickey's Fun Wheel have been painted black.

April 6, 2009 - The California Screamin sunburst has been painted. Work on a control office for World of Color begins.

April 7, 2009 - The Games of the Boardwalk have opened.

April 11, 2009 - The sunburst is done on California Screamin'.

April 12, 2009 - Lights are installed on MFW and the outline of Mickey's face has gone up on the place where the old Sun face was. The railings for the MFW have been painted red.

April 17, 2009 - The Mickey face has gone up on Mickey's Fun Wheel.

May 2, 2009 - The sign for Mickey's Fun Wheel has gone up.

May 4, 2009 - Mickey's Fun Wheel has opened.

May 11, 2009 - Lighting is installed on the sunburst.

May 18, 2009 - They have begun expanding the seat area.

June 1, 2009 - Construction walls are up around the former Golden Dreams and the old restroom. Construction walls have surrounded the Sunglass Shack.

June 7, 2009 - Construction walls have expanded to Souvenir 66 and Corn Dog Castle.

June 29, 2009 - The Sunglass Shack has been torn down.

July 13, 2009 - Construction on Cars Land begins.

July 14, 2009 - Orange Stinger closes to become Silly Symphony Swings.

July 27, 2009 - There is scaffolding inside the former Orange Stinger.

July 30, 2009 - They removed the top of the orange of the Orange Stinger and began peeling it.

August 3, 2009 - The entrance plaza and back walls are all that is left of the old Golden Dreams. The seating area is expanded and railings have been installed on the side. The mural for the former Golden Dreams is now demolished as well as the former restroom complex. Vertical construction has began on one of the two fountains for World of Color.

August 7, 2009 - Peeling is finished on the former Orange Stinger. They are cutting open the bottom of the ride too. The old Golden Dreams building is now gone leaving the entrance arch, which will stay.

August 13, 2009 - The bottom of the Orange Stinger is peeled exposing the maintenance equipment for the former ride.

August 16, 2009 - Two trees have gone up in the viewing area.

August 21, 2009 - The top of the Orange Stinger (the swings) has been removed. The perimeter fence surrounding the Cars Land construction site is nearly complete. The concrete at the base of the former Orange Stinger has been poured. The edge of the viewing area for World of Color has been painted green.

August 28, 2009 - The equipment for the swings of the Orange Stinger is gone. They begin digging for the basement for the Little Mermaid attraction. The perimeter fence surrounding the Cars Land construction site is complete.

--UPDATED 10/22/2010--

September 8, 2009 - More trees are going in the viewing area.

September 15, 2009 - Orange Stinger is gone. The cables for World of Color are getting themed. Concrete formation is starting on the viewing area.

September 29, 2009 - The path in between the construction walls for the WOC viewing area and Little Mermaid has been narrowed further. Lighthouses have been installed in front of Fun Wheel for World of Color's projection towers. Some cuts have been made on the stage of WOC. Scaffolding is down around the WOC control booth. Land grading for the little Mermaid starts. Pipes are being installed where Radiator Springs Racers will go up. SS Rustworthy's bottom is gone.

October 12, 2009 - Orange scaffolding is going up around the former Orange Stinger to prepare for its transformation into Silly Symphony Swings. Some railings from Orange Stinger's stairs are getting removed. Some rockwork by the control booth of WOC is done.

October 26, 2009 - They are starting to refill the lagoon. More shrubbery has been planted in the viewing area.

November 16, 2009 - The paint from the old Orange Stinger entrance is gone. A 1900s-looking tower is up in the WOC viewing area. The dome projections are up in the Paradise Pier lagoon for WOC. The control room looks complete. More concrete is poured in the viewing area for WOC. Testing starts on the LED fixtures on the fountains for WOC.

November 23, 2009 - Concrete is getting poured for the Little Mermaid. The performance corridor was closed off as they complete concrete work on the fountain. The WOC stage has been separated into three sections. Concrete for Radiator Springs Racers has started.

December 17, 2009 - Some lights are installed on the WOC viewing area. The water has risen, reaching the control booth and Fun Wheel. A crane is up in Cars Land. The viewing area for WOC is nearly done. More concrete is installed by the turnaround for RSRacers.

January 4, 2010 - The performance corridor is back up. They are preparing to put up the boardwalk in front of the WOC viewing area. The rockwork around WOC seems to be done. Decoration supports for Silly Symphony Swings are going up. Lots of foundations are getting poured for the Little Mermaid. The fountain in the front entrance of the park is dry for some reason.

January 11, 2010 - Some portions of Hollywood Blvd have been fenced off for work to begin on the red trolleys. Some work walls also have appeared by the Tower of Terror. A temporary path has been opened by A Bug's Land and Tower of Terror. Track is on site for Radiator Springs Racers. A huge chunk of the foundation for the outdoor portion of Radiator Springs Racers is poured. Some work is occurring in Silly Symphony Swings.

January 19, 2010 - The walls by the 1900s-looking tower is down, thus opening that part of the area. A portion of the WOC stage is about the same level as the water. More concrete foundations for the Little Mermaid are poured, with some concrete forms done. They are pouring foundations for Radiator Springs Racers' massive show building. The concrete around Silly Symphony Swings is gone. More steel has gone up for SSSwings' structures. The lights around the 1900s-looking tower is lit up.

January 25, 2010 - Part of the sidewalk for Hollywood Blvd is extended for the Red Car Trolleys. Most of the Tower of Terror exit courtyard has been taken over by construction walls for the Trolleys. The Golden Vine Winery is closed except for Blue Sky Cellar. The top for Silly Symphony Swings is installed. The construction walls for Little Mermaid have expanded, while the walls for the viewing area have pushed back, going through some of the new area.

February 1, 2010 - Some walls are done for Little Mermaid. The canopy for Silly Symphony Swings has risen, and the artwork around the ride pole is up, along with the chains for the swings. Supports for Radiator Springs Racers are on site for track. The track is on site in the construction zone.

February 16, 2010 - One of the platforms is in show level: under the lagoon. Testing is occurring on the fountains for World of Color during the day (it occurs at night after park hours since January). The boardwalk is getting put together. Some structures are going up in the viewing area. A Mickey figure has gone up on the Silly Symphony Swings. A sign has been put up on the Hollywood Blvd walls saying that the land is open in order to not confuse guests.

March 1, 2010 - Some of the track for Radiator Springs Racers is installed. Steel elements seem to be ready for the walls for RSR. Some rails are on site for the trolleys in Hollywood Blvd. The Golden Zephyr is down for a repaint. Some of the boardwalk is installed. WOC fountain testing with lights starts. Foundations for the first turnaround/helix for RSR are getting poured.

March 15, 2010 - Shrubbery is planted on the WOC viewing area, called Paradise Park. They also started working on the water play area. On the other side of the viewing area, they are installing fountains and painting handrails. In the World of Color construction side, they've installed a bar with a few LED rings that aren't attached to a fountain and put wood over the top of the on-stage projectors. Scaffolding is up by the old Orange Stinger entrance. Hand railings have gone up on Silly Symphony Swings' ride platform. Most of the foundations for the Little Mermaid are down, and they have started to pour the floor down. Some temporary white track pieces have been installed for Radiator Springs Racers (a testing loop).

March 22, 2010 - They're starting to attach stringers to the stage in Paradise Park.

March 29, 2010 - The area by the Hyperion Theater is opened up (where there is Red Trolley work). The vines are up for Paradise Park. The boardwalk is nearly done. Golden Zephyr has been repainted. The path between the Paradise Park and Little Mermaid sites have opened up a bit. The foundations for the Little Mermaid are coming together. Rebar is down for the Little Mermaid. Steel supports are starting to go up for Radiator Springs Racers rock walls. They dug out the area where the first turnaround is going up.

March 31, 2010 - Maliboomer is announced for removal.

April 12, 2010 - Vertical construction on the Little Mermaid has started. Paradise Park is complete. Some electrical gears are getting installed on Radiator Springs Racers. The first helix for RSR is being graded. Some of the concrete for the first helix is getting poured.

April 19, 2010 - The construction walls for the trolley have moved a little to the right, exposing the tracks. Paradise Park is now open, though the boardwalk is still closed. More supports are up for the Little Mermaid. Rebar is down for the first helix and for the "launch" in Radiator Springs Racers. Some pics of RSR construction are up in Blue Sky Cellar.

April 28, 2010 - Most of the supports for Little Mermaid are up. The archway for the rock walls on Radiator Springs Racers has gone in.

May 3, 2010 - The temporary path by Tower of Terror and A Bug's Lands is closed, so they can build a permanent link. Most of the structural steel supports for Radiator Springs Racers are up. Some supports are going up for the rock faces. The scaffolding is down around the old Orange Stinger entrance, exposing the newly rethemed entrance.

May 10, 2010 - A test vehicle for Radiator Springs Racers has arrived on site, that looks like Lightning McQueen.

May 17, 2010 - Some work walls are up by Monsters Inc for more trolley work. The entrance for Tower of Terror has also been blocked off for trolley work, and work on the permanent link between ToT and A Bug's Land. A countdown clock to World of Color has been installed in Blue Sky Cellar. The roof has been installed on Little Mermaid. More theming is installed on Silly Symphony Swings. The scaffolding for SSS is removed, exposing the bottom of the ride. They are testing Radiator Springs Racers with the test vehicle.

May 28, 2010 - Disney's California Adventure gets a new name... it is the same name but with the apostrophe on Disney removed: "Disney California Adventure."

June 5, 2010 - World of Color begins public performance previews.

June 11, 2010 - World of Color opens.

September 30, 2010 - They have started dismantling Maliboomer.

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