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Shutting Down 6 Nightclubs |
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 ORLANDO — Walt Disney World is shutting down the six nightclubs at Pleasure Island to make its party district at Downtown Disney more family friendly.
BET SoundStage Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, 8Trax and three other clubs that have for years catered largely to young, single adults — rather than to Disney's bread-and-butter family market — will close after Sept. 27.
During the next couple of years, Disney will reopen the Pleasure Island venues with a broader mix of restaurants and shops. Pleasure Island's change has been the subject of rumors for a while. Now 19 years old, it may have seemed an odd venture for Disney, but it appeared to thrive...
— So much so that some in the industry have blamed it for accelerating the decline of the nightlife district in downtown Orlando during the 1990s.
In announcing what they called "a bold new vision" for all of Downtown Disney on Friday, Disney officials framed the Pleasure Island nightclub closures as a response to customers who say they want more broad-based dining and retail opportunities throughout the 120-acre district.
"Right now we believe we've got a shortage of dining capacity and shopping capacity, so we'll be adding to those areas, and we'll be looking at some specialized entertainment options also," said Downtown Disney Vice President Kevin Lansberry.
More Here: http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/jul/01/disney-shut-down-6-nightclubs-pleasure-island/
BY SCOTT POWERS Orlando Sentinel
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
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