BREAKING: All Construction Ceased Across Walt Disney World Resort Due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Concerns

Jessica Figueroa

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BREAKING: All Construction Ceased Across Walt Disney World Resort Due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Concerns

With the entirety of the Walt Disney World Resort effectively shutting down by the end of this week due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic concerns, many were wondering what would happen to the various ongoing construction projects throughout the parks and resorts. Well, it appears that all construction operations have come to a halt in light of the closures.

Cinderella Castle Construction7.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&ixlib=php 1.2

According to reports from the Orlando Business Journal, The Walt Disney Company has shuttered construction operations at Walt Disney World, according to the head of the region’s top construction trade organization.

It wasn’t immediately known if construction workers will be paid or when construction operations will resume, said Mark Wylie, president and CEO of the Central Florida chapter of Associated Builders & Contractors Inc.

Wylie expects other Central Florida construction sites to shut down, as well. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended March 16 that events of 10 or more people be canceled or postponed.

“They’re going to be closing a lot of construction sites,” Wylie said of the Central Florida region. “It’s already having a terrific impact on the economy.”

Disney wasn’t immediately available for comment, but it’s definitive that all ongoing projects, from simple makeovers like the Cinderella Castle project, to large themed resorts like the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, and even new upcoming attractions, like TRON Lightcycle Run in the Magic Kingdom and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in EPCOT, will be further delayed. In terms of time periods for the setbacks, the Orlando Business Journal reports:

“Everything from feasibility to pricing, discounting and construction. This will halt the construction on these projects and delay everybody. What will the delays be — is it one to three months? We don’t know,” said Dennis Speigel, founder and CEO with International Theme Parks Service Inc., Cincinnati-based theme park consulting firm.

While a number of projects we’re all excited for will inevitably be delayed, this is for the safety of all workers and contractors building these new park additions. And for those of you who were afraid Spaceship Earth might’ve been re-done during the closure… it may still be untouched by the time we get back. No official statements have been issued regarding ongoing construction at Disneyland Resort, but it’s likely work on the upcoming Avengers Campus, which was slated for a July 18 opening, has also been impacted.

We’ll be keeping our eyes on developments here in Florida and in California, as well as in Paris, and Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong regarding the COVID-19 outbreak’s effect on Disney Parks operations and beyond. For all of the latest Coronavirus-related Disney Parks news throughout the ongoing pandemic, continue to check here.

9 thoughts on “BREAKING: All Construction Ceased Across Walt Disney World Resort Due to Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Concerns”

  1. I don’t understand the need to shut down construction projects. Much of the work is outdoors and people aren’t crammed together even if indoors. Seems like overkill. Terrible for the all those workers. The priority should be to keep as many people employed as possible. With the parks closed, it’s the perfect opportunity to work unencumbered.

    • For huge projects like this, they will have to work in teams. And the more people you come in contact with, the more chance you have of getting it or spreading it. It’s very cautionary, but maybe that’s what we need right now.

      • And then again maybe its not. Look the precautions come down to civil society. If we have a society of people so detached and unaccountable to their fellow citizens that they don’t even have enough sense or impulse control to take precautions to protect themselves and those around them then we are failing as a Nation. Weak-minded to think people can survive without work, income, food and shelter payments. The anxiety levels of people who are not accustomed to cage-like waiting for the Government to feed them have their time limits.
        There is a fine line between bureaucratic feeling out how far they can push their control over our lives, movement & freedoms without pushback & the need for public safety during this pandemic. We need to be vigilant, realize we are free people and we are not descendants of fearful men & women. Be proud, strong & independent in your thought process. God bless and protect everyone and may we find incredible success and prosperity when we are on the other side to this darkness. No winter lasts forever. Harsh winters always make way for the most glorious Springs ,not because they are different but because they are recognized in contrast to the hardships that were endured.

  2. I heard that the guidelines are supposed to last for 15 days, which isn’t that long. Expect construction to resume in two weeks!

    • UPDATE: The guidelines got extended to April 30th. However, the Florida counties where Walt Disney World lies (Osceola and Orange) have similar guidelines that last until April 9th, so perhaps construction at the resort could resume the day after that.

  3. This is all very unnerving. It will be interesting to see where we are when things start opening back up in May (I assume). Really dreading the news that the coming recession will mean cutbacks across the board for the Epcot project. Regardless of cutbacks, I bet we’ll see 6 month completion delays as construction projects and workers have to spin back up after being paused/laid off/spread to the wind for some number of weeks.

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