Haha I live in CT and my parents originally were going to purchase a house in Celebration for my family to grow up in because Disney is such a big part of our lives
A friend and I drove around Celebration late one night just for kicks..it was like stepping into the twilight zone..no animals neither wild nor domestic..bird song piped in through hidden loud speakers..it was bizarre..I'm a Native Floridian, and this was strange and so artificial..no thanks
@@oldisnew3967 oh hey God..I didn't know you liked to watch RUclips..I would have thought it would be rather tedious for you since you know all see all are all...and all...can't wait to celebrate Jesus's birthday Merry Merry God!
Celebration has nature walks that span several in an throughout its perimeter; its had a bear or two, wild boar, bald eagles, owls, soft-shell turtles, foxes, otters, deer of course, gators (goes without saying), rabbits, bobcats - green anole lizards but also the violet looking salamanders that are really rare. The fishing is fun there too. I think at a glance I understand where you’re coming from if you’re just driving through, but if you went for a walk on those trails which connect you to the various villages (ex: Downtown to Artisan Park & vice versa) you would see more different animal species than you could count with your fingers and toes. There’s also that giant grasshopper that’s seasonal through the Summer & Spring months which is pretty peculiar - it is strange when a squirrel runs toward you though I’ll give you that lolol
@@Natalie-lw2cn I expected to hear the usual night noises..and I heard bird song..and I wasn't there in the morning as you astutely pointed out..look I'm not saying Celebration now sucks..this was about 20 years ago..it was all brand new, well what was there..me and my friend found it odd that we did hear birds singing..we would hear it out of the trees the very young trees, with nothing flying around or on power wires..it was coming in loops since you could hear it driving from spot to spot, the same bird song, sounding exactly like it did a tree or too back..and I am a native Floridian who has spent a lot of time outside in this fair state. The lack of normal nocturnal sounds was actually deafening. There were not cats lurking, no dogs barking and very little movement coming from the houses that were there. And btw that is standard Disney S.O.P. They use both smells and audio repetitions throughout the parks, so piping in some birdsong at 11 pm is not a big deal to them.
@@GwenWittig oh I live in Florida as well and I remember when I went there (which was pretty recently like I don't remember when I went there but it was this year)it seemed cute but at the same time idk everything is too close to each other plus it's not even affordable I never noticed that speaker thing there since I went there in the morning but I have seen those speakers in their hotels before its just odd to put fake bird noises lol real ones are better
I was the 7th resident that moved there in 1996 and lived there for 6 years. It was an exciting time then and had that small town feel for the first couple of years. After a recent visit, though, it just seemed very overcrowded and a tourist destination. I’m glad I lived there in the early years....great memories for sure.
I'm from Ireland and Celebration was the first town I visited in the US. It was absolutely bizarre, I initially wondered if all American towns felt so surreal and artificial. I quickly learned that Celebration is a strange anomaly.
As a kid who grew up in Celebration since the age of 2, I can say this is the best video I’ve seen on the town. Thank you for being honest and not sensationalizing the downsides. And as for the comment about children growing up there getting hit in the face by reality, I can say that is partly true. Thankfully, I spent a good amount of time out of the town though. There really is nowhere else like it.
Im from Kissimmee... Celebration is a good safe place to pull over and count the bullet holes in your car you got while driving around in Central Florida..
I used to live in Celebration and I loved every moment of it. The scenery was idyllic, i felt safe going out for a walk alone even at midnight everyone you met was nice. Not that it didn't have its problems. Everything mentioned about the homes here is correct and the majority of the people that lived in Celebration did have a higher median income than the rest of the country and yes the majority of the people that worked inside of Celebration could not even afford to live there. I myself worked in Orlando because that was the only place i could find a job that payed me enough to live in Celebration, but the town was not a disaster. If you could afford to live there its like living the dream. I still go there on occasion to catch a movie or go to a bar because i know i probably won't have to deal with rowdy patrons or high crime.
I grew up in Davenport, right next to celebration, and actually I always wanted to live there, I thought it was perfect, I would love visiting it, but idk I feel like I’m the only one..
Can I get a "hell yeh" here?! Former Floridian and you cant pay me to live in this corporate pile of forced dreams. Give me a shanty with the bare essentials in a modest 1 story made ood school with care, craftmanship and uniqueness.
I remember the old Benny Hill joke when he described making a movie: the scenery was beautiful, the only problem was that people kept getting in front of it. If you want a perfect town, don’t let people move into it.
There is a book published about 20 years ago entitled Celebration USA. It’s a first resident point of view that pretty much tells this exact story. I have read it many times and it is a good read. I would recommend it very much.
@@vincevegacustoms754 HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA oh man... good one! Oh wait, you were serious? You know people still robbed people and committed crimes before money existed right? Like, crimes of passion are still a thing?
Vince Vega Customs hey you do know uhh that society is built around money like how would that even work currency is need because stores wouldn’t exist things would just be taken and probably a lot more problems money is needed for a society and I think someone as deep as you can realise we live in a society
Walt Disney was obsessed with controlling the lives of those who worked for him so Celebration would be his ideal society. No filith, no poors, no foreigners, and everyone's lives built around supporting his company. Kinda like Henry Ford in that regard.
When celebration was newer, I remember that there were income restrictions you had to qualify for to live there. And when I visited it, it creeped me out. Because you got a sense of it being a fake, artificial and unrealistic world. It was like being on the set of Leave it to Beaver. That was in the early 2000’s, so things may have changed. But that was my impression of the place.
I just commented that on someone else’s comment: There’s lots of cities like that here in CA. SF and Santa Cruz come to mind. Some people take the train for an hour just to work at Safeway in San Carlos. The wealthy could care less if there’s anywhere for these people to live locally.
@@kathyyoung1774 Yeah the wealthy expect us to commute hours to get minimum wage in their upscale neighborhoods and many have no choice but to do this to survive.
It'll be really interesting to see what the town looks like in another 25 years. By that point, the original homes are either going to be demolished and rebuilt, or completely refurbished.
I think these past two videos have been some of your best, Rob! The production values are beautiful, and I love the use of the old Disney cartoons with certain segments!
It’s okay. No school in Osceola country has a capable faculty. Also, you are really heavily emphasizing the teething years. Celebration is stupidly different now and it a great town. My only complaint is that demand to live there is still so high that the housing is wildly overpriced. Sincerely, -Florida Man (oh wait.. no, not that)
I'm sure if they could have they would have gotten their own local school district just for Celebration, but Florida doesn't allow that. they have county based school districts. I suspect a lot of people use private schools there as well.
@@Imperial0666 That is true. As a former teacher at the high school as well as Celebration resident, the high school has a very low percentage of Celebration students. Most are bused in. The teachers are fantastic; it's the system that stinks. My older two kids went to the high school for all four of their years, my youngest began in the first grade at the K-8 (which is small). We chose to move, but not due to the school or town. (Love Merritt Island!) We enjoyed living there and I'm laughing at this thread. It is a unique place, but the people are nice, everyday people. Not snobby. We still have friends there and frequently are there. It is not all "white" people! People are too quick to judge or believe everything they hear.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I was trying so hard to find this through google searches last year and came up with NOTHING! This is what I remember from childhood - that Celebration was riddled with construction problems and unhappy residents! I felt like history was being wiped out! Thank you for compiling this video!
I worked at the hospital in Celebration. They were incredibly focused on creating a facade. They didn’t allow overhead announcements unless there was a code blue. They had strict dress codes. They made the hospital look like a hotel that reflected Epcot, where different areas of the hospital represented different countries around the world.
To me its a success. It is a beautiful, functional town near Disney. Of course it would not be perfect, but it is certainly better than most towns in the U.S
It's falling apart, nobody owns anything because a company owns it, it's insanely expensive for what you get, the schools are garbage but pretends it's not garbage, and the HOA is utterly tyrannical in their policies. No city should take any planning advice from this place, as it seems like a total joke.
@@Nocturne22 8:20 It says Disney was selling the houses. That’s a real thing that some companies own entire neighborhoods but that’s not what’s happening here specifically. People DO own those homes.
As much as many fans love and respect Walt's final dream of Epcot being the city that could redefine the future of cities and communities, Celebration shows that (even on a smaller scale) it would have been almost impossible to hold onto the planed happiness of having everything remain perfect for everyone who lived in and around it, despite any progress it could have made.
Yeah, but I'm also pretty sure that many rich (or at least above average socio-economicly) suburbs are already that today... I don't think celebration is actually any different...
@@yehonatanomer158 Many suburbs had the same issues, but not as severe an extent as described here (I can't imagine many places in my town that would get away having 80% of its residents be white).
My mom and her family lived in celebration, they were actually part of the initial wave. So after the video I asked my mom about the school there and she laughed and said "it was such a joke"
It's not even finished. Also, it's a completely different kind of community. Celebration is more like a regular upper-Middle Class neighborhood with properties starting at $200,000 or something, whereas Golden Oak is just a multimillionaire gated subdivision. I still think Orlando in general is not very "classy." It just doesn't have enough wealthy like most other parts of the country. There's not enough restaurants, clubs, high-end stores to cater to the wealthy the way other major cities could.
Karlton est do you live in orlando? Celebration has millions of dollar homes. High end stores are millenia mall and outlet mall. Lots of high end shops.
I lived here and it’s really awesome, all of these issues are literally from when the town was first started initially, and now it’s really one of the best schools in the state
Even if Celebration wasn't the ideal model town, I still think there are plenty of lesson you can learn from it to further improve existing communities.
I grew up in celebration. Lived there from when I was five to when I was eleven. It was a very interesting experience. The town itself is beautiful, and there’s a lot of things for kids to do in the town center. The people however leave a lot to be desired. I can’t remember the details but my parents were always aware of some new drama that everyone was going through. It was always such basic suburbian stuff too, like person x didn’t attend person y’s barbecue. They would just get real nasty with each other over really petty stuff.
The thing this, Celebration inspired other neighborhoods in Central Florida. I live in Avalon park, which is one of them. I should also mention that Celebration Hospital is amazing. It looks like a hotel and the rooms are beautiful. It’s great being able to watch the Disney fireworks after giving birth.
When I was in Orange County CA in 2003, the builders called it "90 days from pour to door" -- they would build the houses so fast. And then the shit would hit the fan when folks moved in.
I do not feel it was much like EPCOT. EPCOT was to be only for people who worked at Disney. They were not to own any property, and could not stay after retirement. In exchange of not owning, they would always have the most up-to-date technologies in their homes, be able to use the monorail, have energy produced, food grown, and large international food/shopping areas. The schools, I imagine, would also (like everything else there) only be for residents.
@@a_cowwithlegs Yes...that was the original concept for Epcot (acronym for Experimental Planned Community Of Tomorrow).Walt was still alive when it was first proposed,, but those who knew better told him as residents would have all those strictures and regulations, and no representational government--only the Disney organization--he would have to pay people to live there.
Still don't understand why disney had an issue with residents voting rather than just landowners. If he could create districts that allowed only landowner voting, why didn't that extend to a housing district too?
I went there a few years ago with my brother. He said he was scared to sneeze. Creepy and I can't get it into my head that the shops are real, the hospital is real etc. Just all seems like a toy town
I love walking around celebration with my kids... there are plenty of parks, boardwalks, and the people are usually friendly. I have friends who own homes there and they joke around that they can never build a pool or put up a fence... Almost like they own the house just not the land....
This was fascinating! The whole concept of “Celebration” is so interesting and strange-I sort of can’t believe it exists. Thanks for putting this awesome video together!
As someone who just recently moved from Celebration, I really appreciated this two part series. My experience with Celebration started in 2005 and technically still continues to today. This town is special because it's close enough to everything, but it's basically secluded. You're right next to the tourist traps and multiple families that need help, but you rarely see it. Celebration is a conundrum to many, but it used to be home.
I live in Celebration and absolutely love it. ...but Disney selling Town Center to Lexin was a horrible decision. Lexin is a horrible company and has zero quality standards. Their buildings are filthy, in need of major repair and they definitely are not honoring their agreement with Disney. ......but I definitely love living in Celebration. It's so incredible here!
I was there recently and that is what I noticed the most. I expected something out of "The Truman Show" but in that movie, the town seemed new and maintained. Celebration seems old and neglected
as someone who lives in Orlando and visits celebration frequently I love this video and this channel. keep it up rob, I love all the detail you put in these videos
Martin Petersson Not OP but I was surprised by how community-oriented it was when I visited. Disney definitely achieved their goal on that front. Like, if you've lived there for a while and hang out in the local pub alone, you're probably going to end up seeing people you know anyway. To be honest, before I visited for the first time, I was expecting that everyone would be uptight and just keep to themselves and only live there because it's Disney, but there seems to be a real sense of comradery between the locals.
I suppose live in the "single man's" version of this community. An ultra modern, 500 unit high-rise Condominium. Everything is astheticly pleasing if not a bit too uniform. When it's time for the orchid in my elevator vestibule to be replaced another one exactly like it is brought in. The staff is very nice but you can't get away with anything. Cameras track your every move. I can't even go from one residential floor to another without obtaining a six diget elevator code. I even had to attend a new resident orientation after I bought my place. Me & one other new home owner were inundated with rules. Just when I think it's all a little too perfect I walk outside & see a homeless man beating a shopping cart with a baseball bat.
this was really fun! I loved the sense of community and being able to have questions answered, I didn't have to wait too long because I only saw the premier thumbnail in my feed this morning. So the only con would probably be the wait, but it was still as entertaining, if not more than a regular upload!
These videos about Celebration were AMAZING. I have been waiting a very long time for someone to delve this deep into the story behind the town. Thanks Rob!
I think I would have been disappointed if I was one of those original buyers. Expectations were too high in terms of what it was going to be like. However, if I were to buy now, I think I'd have a better chance of being happy there. My expectations would be that it's a nice community of people who want to live close to the happiest place on earth. Plus, even for some of the most expensive houses up for sale, the real estate is actually more bang for your buck than Toronto (my home), so that would be great too! Ultimately, I think it would depend on whether or not the reality of living near Disney would live up to the ideal of living near Disney.
Yes, we all want to live in the leftover sets from Pleasantville. I personally would prefer a Norman Rockwell inspired place or the town from Edward Scissorhands!
This reminds me of a horror movie. Your car falls into a ditch and you look for help. Turns out you’re in a perfect little town, but there’s a dark secret that everyone is forced to keep.
Obviously there's lots of vocal feedback in regards to the premieres. I appreciate that! I just got the feature today so I'm testing it out with this video, but I currently don't have any plans set in stone for the future beyond that. I like the idea of being able to watch with other subscribers and chat, but I also understand that having a non-live video sit in a sub box for days can be annoying. So in the future if I use it again I'll try to set it up the night before rather than days before.
I just wish we could toggle premiers on/off.. I had 3 premier videos waiting in my subscription feed recently, so I think they're rolling it out more. It's just like a tease/"gotchya!"/psych! kind of thing when we realize it's not actually a video we can watch. Maybe some people like that, which is fine, but gah! Need to option to toggle off premiers! :)
I live in celebration so the place is actually really nice. The place has nice houses,great community, I go to school there and I go downtown often right after school. This place is quite great. The place also has rich and medium houses to make everyone not feel like their poor and everyone’s rich. Our school is now k-8. Also it is the same as most schools. It is very easy to be active hear. Yes celebration was bad at first but now it’s nice. Looking at the old time and not the new can really ruin our economy. This place isn’t perfect btw it is normal. We also have the town center that is great and a great place to go is upper crust. It is for some rich people and yes I have rich fwiends, but I live moderately. Showing these videos also shows that it hasn’t changed and it’s nice it really doesn’t need to. The only thing that changed is how great it is now and the f***in theater is closed. And to the end part this place is great and I took this entire video + some more to write this so saying the worst place to live is not very kind and while it might help you please be considering what effect it has on us. People on the internet can change people’s opinions so can you please at least change the title to “celebration,a nice place with a bad history” or something like that? If you do thank and if you don’t screw you(the aithiest way of saying bless you but I don’t believe in god).
Based on the title of the video, I was ready to hate on this video before I watched it. I own a home in Celebration and am quite sick of people who don't live here crapping on it. That said, this video was VERY well thought through and researched. Celebration is just a huge neighborhood with Disney roots. It has it's ups and downs for SURE. That said, it's one of a kind and a ton of fun. Yes the HOA fees are steep, the rules strict, and the home prices are high, but it keeps the town looking amazing and protects our investment. Great video.
I had no clue that Celebration was a part of Disney! Every time I go to Orlando I make a special trip to Celebration to eat at the Boston Seafood Restaurant.
@Tiny Princess I didn't know that either. But the way the town is laid out, you can tell Disney definitely had their input on the design. I swear I could picture 60's era cars in there and a community where everyone knows everyone. It almost looks like you are stepping back in time.
It wasn't groundbreaking even at the time, it was riding a wave of neo-traditional communities begun primarily by the architectural firm Duany Plater-Zyberk. There was also Kentlands in Maryland, and Seaside in Florida (where The Truman Show was filmed).
I grew up in a town similar to Celebration (and by that I mean it had also been built and designed by Arvida, which had been one of the main contractors Disney sourced stuff from for Celebration); it's funky to see how similar our "town center" shopping areas are.
Growing up in the '60s, I was fascinated by all the urban renewal/city planning projects happening across the country. Out with the old and in with the new, which leaned heavily upon the prevailing modern architecture of the day, which intrigued me. When I first became aware of EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow) I was in awe of what was to be a huge leap forward at trying new ways of living, learning, working and co-existing with each other. At least that is what I had been led to believe. Suburbia was at this time beginning its full power outward expansion from most large cities and vast land areas were being constructed in what would become nothing more than places to raise families in monochromatic blandness. Places with no 'there'. Just houses and little more. Roads that went in endless curves and dead-ends to nowhere. My family moved to a D.C. area suburb during the early days of this trend. I had two planned towns to observe nearby, Reston, Virginia, and Columbia, Maryland and my dad obliged my interest by driving there on Saturdays. EPCOT seemed to also want to address this 'just roads and houses to nowhere' and try something new, possibly trying several alternatives to reach the desired outcome, a new way of living. To say I was disappointed when I first read about EPCOT construction commencing to build an amusement park is an understatement. I held out hope that one day Walt Disney's vision would be realized. The town Walt had wanted to build did eventually get built. This video helped me realize how that vision that seemed so ambitious in my youth become just another real estate transaction in the end.
I was actually born there in the Celebration hospital. Lived there up until 2015 but overall, it gave me a lot of good memories and helped me grow as a person later on.
Was in Celebration recently and I was surprised at how old things looked. Peeling paint, roads that need resurfacing, etc. Not nearly as nice as the Truman Show. It looked like the whole place was in need of major maintenance.
My best friend dad collapsed at Cirque de Solei and was taken to Celebration Hospital. We were there and so went to the Hospital and I was freaked out. I didn't see but a few people and one person I saw literally popped out of one door and into another one. No one was in the hallways. It was too perfect and weird.
Nice job as always on this series, Rob - I learned a few things I didn’t know! My personal opinion is that all the stuff tying Celebration into the concept for EPCOT the city was something tacked on by PR people after the fact when people brought up the history of the area. Similar communities had already been built, like Seaside in the Panhandle; Disney just took the idea and kicked it up a notch. About the only thing developers learned from places like Celebration and Seaside was that they could build homes on smaller lots and charge more money by adding a few design flourishes and selling it as a walkable community. 😃 Interestingly from my observations from visits to Celebration, the whole walkable community thing never really happened as far as I could tell. Most of the time I never saw community members interacting with each other any more than in any other community, and the town center never really fulfilled its role as the shopping center for the community ( most people got in their cars and went shopping at the big boxes on US 192 or in Kissimmee). I was more likely to see people driving to the town center if they had a reason to go there from their homes - I remember the parking lots in the town center always being full of cars and few pedestrians. Still, I had friends who lived there, and they were mostly satisfied with their experience.
Over a decade a go I worked for an electrical company and for just over two years, all I did was wire and trim 4 giant houses on Aquila loops (only a few small breaks for other jobs). The people were great, to include the neighborhood people and home owners whose homes I was working on. On multiple occasions on the weekends, the owners would stop by and buy lunch for the workers. Another time, we did a 7 day OT push with another crew to have a section done in time for another trade. They were pleased of our efforts and gave each crew (two crews, two people each) a bottle of rum at the end of the day. It was pocket change to them, but was a great gesture that went a long way.
There already qas a town built by a company for its workers that was quaint, quiet and for the most part crime free with great school. It's been around for about 100 years and is still going strong!
We lived in Orlando. After the town opened, we went to tour. It was idealic. I walked through home after home, dreaming that it was mine. The downtown just had a few shops with a little food store, wonderful restaurant, a clothing store. Just a dream Land, for sure. We left Florida in 2000, so never heard all this. Too bad. It was the perfect town.
I always wondered what the apartments looked like on the inside, but since I knew I couldn't afford them, and traffic always looked like a nightmare at the entrance of Celebration, I never took the time to look at the apartments on the inside. I did drive around the town once. I just thought the houses were a little too close together considering how much they cost. Oh, and I heard some horror stories about local Orlando area builders who built homes on the opposite side of Orlando during the boom. I heard of walls of new homes that just soaked up water like sponges when it rained (and it rained a lot in Florida).
I grew up around Orlando and lived in a nice exclusive part of winter park when they announced celebration. They were able to sell those things for way more than the bank said they were worth so the appraisals often came in low. It was gimmicky and cheesy.
Rob Thank you for this video. Amazing script quality and message. Felt like a 20/20 episode. I love Disney since my childhood and do practice THE ESCAPISM you talked about for the few days I am there. However, it’s nice for you to talk about the problems without appearing to be biased to appease them. Having said that, it will continue to be the Happiest Place in the World for me. Glad to re-join your channel.
Sounds like what has happened in Santa Fe New Mexico! All the rich Californians moved in, started causing the price of real estate up. They got into the local government and started passing laws to make sure that all the homes in a certain area had to conform to certain criteria. The people that work in Santa Fe, for the most part, can't afford to live there!
My daughter participated in the Disney College Program last fall and I had to take her to a post office while I was there visiting. We ended up in Celebration. I had heard of it and had always wanted to see the town. Such a creepy weird vibe there.
Awesome video. I didn't know anything about celebration and I've stayed in houses there several times during vacations. Never knew it was so...new nor that it was a disney venture.
Fascinating background info on Celebration. We still loved our visit to Celebration, staying at the Bohemian Hotel - we just posted the video from our trip to Celebration on our channel.
My home there caught on fire. When the fire department showed up they were all dressed as Disney characters. The guy in the Mickey costume passed out of heat exhaustion. All in all it was a interesting day.
Strange, if i’m not mistaken, Celebration is covered by Reedy Creek’s emergency services, which although heavily influenced and managed by Disney Corp, is exempt from the Disney World nonsense. Another point is apparently Disney has their own security, and at times qazi police force. Wouldn’t Reedy Creek or the local sheriff be responsible for legitimate police force, not a private company?
I live in celebration! It is really nice with a great school. We do have a lot of people from other places. We have people knocking on are doors sometimes. But it’s actually really nice. Kids walk down town to go eat after school.
I can see why you would think Disney making ”the perfect town” would be a good idea, but look any deeper and you will easily see that perfection in impossible, especially when a huge company is doing it on their own dime
I actually live Celebration not bad have my greatest friends here one my my greatest Memories here and has one of the greatest Schools which I go to all in all great town, nice to see a video about my home
Visiting Celebration is a great experience, especially at Christmas time. They make it snow every hour starting at 6pm and over the years the quality of the "snow" improved so much that it looks real, especially on a cold night. Residents deck out their homes with lights and decorations, they have carolers stroll around the town square, they set up an ice rink for the kids and sell hot cocoa and cookies. Idyllic. Yes, it's like walking through a movie set. Yes, it has a 1950's feel. Yes, it's like the Truman Show, but honestly I think I'd rather visit than live there.
We lived there for 14 years 2004-2018. I've lived all over the country and have never seen anything like Celebration. It's not perfect but it's the most amazing place I've ever lived. I wish it was the model for builders/developers. Currently we are moving around b/c of career changes etc. but I'd be really happy to live there again some time in the future. Great quality of life that I haven't seen elsewhere.
flclarkinc that's awesome! How close were you guys to the actual theme parks? Like could you walk to the theme parks or was it more than like a few miles away? Thanks
WellDeservedVacation.com it’s very close by car. You *can* walk but I would never recommend it. I’d say a 10 or 15 minute drive which is nothing in central Florida
![Coheed and Cambria - Searching for Tomorrow [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/hDsYGLbmadg/mqdefault.jpg)
I've been at Celebration and although everything looked nice, it felt like I was inside the Truman Show.
That’s Seaside, also in Florida.
That's what it looks like 😂
LOL
I've always had the impression that every blade of grass had to follow Disney's standards or the Mickey police would be knocking on your door.
But you have to fallow RULES
I got lost driving across Florida once and ended up in Celebration. It was so disturbing. I was like, "Wait, how did I get to Connecticut?"
I live in CT & it indeed looks like my town.
Lol
This is the best comment. 🤣🤣
Haha I live in CT and my parents originally were going to purchase a house in Celebration for my family to grow up in because Disney is such a big part of our lives
as someone who lives in ct, i can attest to this. celebration looks like all the wealthier coast towns here.
A friend and I drove around Celebration late one night just for kicks..it was like stepping into the twilight zone..no animals neither wild nor domestic..bird song piped in through hidden loud speakers..it was bizarre..I'm a Native Floridian, and this was strange and so artificial..no thanks
@@oldisnew3967 oh hey God..I didn't know you liked to watch RUclips..I would have thought it would be rather tedious for you since you know all see all are all...and all...can't wait to celebrate Jesus's birthday Merry Merry God!
Celebration has nature walks that span several in an throughout its perimeter; its had a bear or two, wild boar, bald eagles, owls, soft-shell turtles, foxes, otters, deer of course, gators (goes without saying), rabbits, bobcats - green anole lizards but also the violet looking salamanders that are really rare. The fishing is fun there too. I think at a glance I understand where you’re coming from if you’re just driving through, but if you went for a walk on those trails which connect you to the various villages (ex: Downtown to Artisan Park & vice versa) you would see more different animal species than you could count with your fingers and toes. There’s also that giant grasshopper that’s seasonal through the Summer & Spring months which is pretty peculiar - it is strange when a squirrel runs toward you though I’ll give you that lolol
U expect birds to be singing at night? Lol that happens in the morning
@@Natalie-lw2cn I expected to hear the usual night noises..and I heard bird song..and I wasn't there in the morning as you astutely pointed out..look I'm not saying Celebration now sucks..this was about 20 years ago..it was all brand new, well what was there..me and my friend found it odd that we did hear birds singing..we would hear it out of the trees the very young trees, with nothing flying around or on power wires..it was coming in loops since you could hear it driving from spot to spot, the same bird song, sounding exactly like it did a tree or too back..and I am a native Floridian who has spent a lot of time outside in this fair state. The lack of normal nocturnal sounds was actually deafening. There were not cats lurking, no dogs barking and very little movement coming from the houses that were there. And btw that is standard Disney S.O.P. They use both smells and audio repetitions throughout the parks, so piping in some birdsong at 11 pm is not a big deal to them.
@@GwenWittig oh I live in Florida as well and I remember when I went there (which was pretty recently like I don't remember when I went there but it was this year)it seemed cute but at the same time idk everything is too close to each other plus it's not even affordable I never noticed that speaker thing there since I went there in the morning but I have seen those speakers in their hotels before its just odd to put fake bird noises lol real ones are better
I was the 7th resident that moved there in 1996 and lived there for 6 years. It was an exciting time then and had that small town feel for the first couple of years. After a recent visit, though, it just seemed very overcrowded and a tourist destination. I’m glad I lived there in the early years....great memories for sure.
You had to move eventually. Bad roofs caught you up or just because of job/family?
Why the move out? Very curious as I have heard about crime that also came there, very sad.
I'm from Ireland and Celebration was the first town I visited in the US. It was absolutely bizarre, I initially wondered if all American towns felt so surreal and artificial. I quickly learned that Celebration is a strange anomaly.
Lol that had to be mind boggling
I'm from Ireland as well. Whoops wrong comment. Haha. Thumbs up my man.
"People working in the town shops that couldn't afford to live there..." Florida in a nutshell.
style creator same for living in New York City, Los Angeles or a my asshole big city amiright?!? :)
Any part of the states
American workers in general really.
You're joking right? Florida's cost of living is so cheap lmao
@Matthew Boyce people working at Disney make more than 99% of other companies in similar occupations.
As a kid who grew up in Celebration since the age of 2, I can say this is the best video I’ve seen on the town. Thank you for being honest and not sensationalizing the downsides. And as for the comment about children growing up there getting hit in the face by reality, I can say that is partly true. Thankfully, I spent a good amount of time out of the town though. There really is nowhere else like it.
Its kinda weird how Celebration and Kissimmee are right next to each other yet so so different.
Celebration is in kissimme
@jakerrr celebration is in Kissimmee technically. For example if you live in celebration you can put Kissimmee,FL in your address .
Lord Harry Balls celebration is not an official town
I live in Kissimmee and sometimes visit Celebration, it's a pretty cool. I have a friend who lives there and he says it's a pretty great place.
Im from Kissimmee... Celebration is a good safe place to pull over and count the bullet holes in your car you got while driving around in Central Florida..
I used to live in Celebration and I loved every moment of it. The scenery was idyllic, i felt safe going out for a walk alone even at midnight everyone you met was nice. Not that it didn't have its problems. Everything mentioned about the homes here is correct and the majority of the people that lived in Celebration did have a higher median income than the rest of the country and yes the majority of the people that worked inside of Celebration could not even afford to live there. I myself worked in Orlando because that was the only place i could find a job that payed me enough to live in Celebration, but the town was not a disaster. If you could afford to live there its like living the dream. I still go there on occasion to catch a movie or go to a bar because i know i probably won't have to deal with rowdy patrons or high crime.
Sounds like most of Canada except everybody's broke.
Sick Game Squad Or white people strung out on meth
@gilbert martinez what the fuck does that have anything to do with this
It is a great place to live. None of these things mentioned here outweigh the positives of the community.
I rented a top garage apartment there for 5 years...
It was awesome.
I’m a Floridian. I prefer old, beach cottages over these artificial weird “perfection” homes. In a theme park-
Spiceyspoon :3 not Floridian but I agree.
I grew up in Davenport, right next to celebration, and actually I always wanted to live there, I thought it was perfect, I would love visiting it, but idk I feel like I’m the only one..
Can I get a "hell yeh" here?! Former Floridian and you cant pay me to live in this corporate pile of forced dreams. Give me a shanty with the bare essentials in a modest 1 story made ood school with care, craftmanship and uniqueness.
@@fuxan HECK YAH
I laughed at "perfection"
What I really wanna know is do convenience stores in towns owned by Disney still sell condoms?
This is beyond science
oh shit- probably not.
Of course not, remember, Disney's entire goal is more kids to watch more vids.
They sell condoms in on-property gift shops so I would assume the answer is yes.
.
I remember the old Benny Hill joke when he described making a movie: the scenery was beautiful, the only problem was that people kept getting in front of it.
If you want a perfect town, don’t let people move into it.
I feel like the Bluth Company built those homes..
I think that's why the school there failed. They needed one where children were not SEEN or HEARD.
Solid like a rock!
Oh sure blame the guy in the $10,000 Mickey Mouse suit
Sweetwater is really terrible in that area as well.
There is a book published about 20 years ago entitled Celebration USA. It’s a first resident point of view that pretty much tells this exact story. I have read it many times and it is a good read. I would recommend it very much.
Looks like the town in The Truman Show!
Cricket noises*
Which is also a new urbanist town built in the postmodern style in Florida.
or Hot Fuzz.
I have said the same thing
Sounds like just about every suburban housing development.
It's actually got a nice town centre instead of a strip mall
de sp the town center isn’t my favorite, thats the place I woulda changed to be a strip mall
You can’t make a perfect town because humans are flawed
If everyone would have their place in every communities..there would be no robbing or even crimes.
Humans are flawed because of money
r/iam14andthisisdeep
@@vincevegacustoms754 HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA oh man... good one!
Oh wait, you were serious?
You know people still robbed people and committed crimes before money existed right? Like, crimes of passion are still a thing?
Vince Vega Customs
Not Money. Just Material Wealth in General.
Vince Vega Customs hey you do know uhh that society is built around money like how would that even work currency is need because stores wouldn’t exist things would just be taken and probably a lot more problems money is needed for a society and I think someone as deep as you can realise
we live in a society
Do you think Walt Disney had any idea that he was starting a cult? Did he do it on purpose or was it just a development that his followers believed?
Why do I see the bodies of self-poisoned disciples along the side of the road with "Small, Small World" playing on a maddeningly endless loop?
Walt Disney was obsessed with controlling the lives of those who worked for him so Celebration would be his ideal society. No filith, no poors, no foreigners, and everyone's lives built around supporting his company. Kinda like Henry Ford in that regard.
Cult? Noooooo! Now now nothing's wrong with being a crazy-nutty Micky mouse fan dressed as Cinderella!
@@NotaPizzaGRL just like henry Ford. Did you ever read up on fordlandia? That's some crazy scary stuff!
Cult leaders didnt have prime time channels. 😋
Very entertaining! As someone who's lived in Celebration since day 1, I had no idea people had such strong feelings about a place they don't live in.
Yeah they’re all delusional it ain’t that bad 😂
Wow, who would have thunk that only wealthier people could live in an expensive town?
When celebration was newer, I remember that there were income restrictions you had to qualify for to live there. And when I visited it, it creeped me out. Because you got a sense of it being a fake, artificial and unrealistic world. It was like being on the set of Leave it to Beaver. That was in the early 2000’s, so things may have changed. But that was my impression of the place.
Kinda sounds like they’re trying to build “Pleasantville.”
I thought the same thing too. Now I got to watch that movie again.
Ohhh I remember Lorax. Love that movie
"there were people working in the shops here that couldn't even afford to live there" sounds like the San Francisco Bay area
San diego too!!
That’s exact,y what I was thinking
Or ANY upscale community. Laborers can’t afford to live in every community they help build.
I just commented that on someone else’s comment: There’s lots of cities like that here in CA. SF and Santa Cruz come to mind. Some people take the train for an hour just to work at Safeway in San Carlos. The wealthy could care less if there’s anywhere for these people to live locally.
@@kathyyoung1774 Yeah the wealthy expect us to commute hours to get minimum wage in their upscale neighborhoods and many have no choice but to do this to survive.
It'll be really interesting to see what the town looks like in another 25 years. By that point, the original homes are either going to be demolished and rebuilt, or completely refurbished.
It's still here.
I think these past two videos have been some of your best, Rob! The production values are beautiful, and I love the use of the old Disney cartoons with certain segments!
Thanks! That means a lot to me! I was a little worried about deciding to make them right before a trip, but I'm happy with them!
lmao’d at the part where the painters were moving their butts 😅
It’s okay. No school in Osceola country has a capable faculty. Also, you are really heavily emphasizing the teething years. Celebration is stupidly different now and it a great town. My only complaint is that demand to live there is still so high that the housing is wildly overpriced.
Sincerely,
-Florida Man (oh wait.. no, not that)
*BREAKING NEWS: Florida Man Detained For Alledged Connection To Real Estate Money Laundering Scheme Ran By Cultists Who Worship Cartoon Mouse.*
I'm sure if they could have they would have gotten their own local school district just for Celebration, but Florida doesn't allow that. they have county based school districts. I suspect a lot of people use private schools there as well.
@@Imperial0666 That is true. As a former teacher at the high school as well as Celebration resident, the high school has a very low percentage of Celebration students. Most are bused in. The teachers are fantastic; it's the system that stinks. My older two kids went to the high school for all four of their years, my youngest began in the first grade at the K-8 (which is small). We chose to move, but not due to the school or town. (Love Merritt Island!) We enjoyed living there and I'm laughing at this thread. It is a unique place, but the people are nice, everyday people. Not snobby. We still have friends there and frequently are there. It is not all "white" people! People are too quick to judge or believe everything they hear.
@@mustdieproductions Cartoon thumbnail and fake name. Troll.
@Crystal Method uhhh... as far as I know nobody does that. What you on about mate?
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I was trying so hard to find this through google searches last year and came up with NOTHING! This is what I remember from childhood - that Celebration was riddled with construction problems and unhappy residents! I felt like history was being wiped out! Thank you for compiling this video!
Long Schnozzed Tribesman why are you people so up your own ass about this place? Do you ever leave and think about other people and communities?
I worked at the hospital in Celebration. They were incredibly focused on creating a facade. They didn’t allow overhead announcements unless there was a code blue. They had strict dress codes. They made the hospital look like a hotel that reflected Epcot, where different areas of the hospital represented different countries around the world.
Wow they want you to wear a uniform, what monsters 🤡
To me its a success. It is a beautiful, functional town near Disney. Of course it would not be perfect, but it is certainly better than most towns in the U.S
It's falling apart, nobody owns anything because a company owns it, it's insanely expensive for what you get, the schools are garbage but pretends it's not garbage, and the HOA is utterly tyrannical in their policies. No city should take any planning advice from this place, as it seems like a total joke.
@@Nocturne22 8:20 It says Disney was selling the houses. That’s a real thing that some companies own entire neighborhoods but that’s not what’s happening here specifically. People DO own those homes.
As much as many fans love and respect Walt's final dream of Epcot being the city that could redefine the future of cities and communities, Celebration shows that (even on a smaller scale) it would have been almost impossible to hold onto the planed happiness of having everything remain perfect for everyone who lived in and around it, despite any progress it could have made.
I would take that over the reality of dysfunctional families seen from Seth McFarlene's shows.
Yeah, but I'm also pretty sure that many rich (or at least above average socio-economicly) suburbs are already that today... I don't think celebration is actually any different...
@@yehonatanomer158 Many suburbs had the same issues, but not as severe an extent as described here (I can't imagine many places in my town that would get away having 80% of its residents be white).
Unless you never relinquish ownership. A hotel or apartment building can maintain standards and atmosphere its entire length of operation.
M Fitzburger my town is 77.9% white and that matches most of the surrounding towns in the area.
My mom and her family lived in celebration, they were actually part of the initial wave. So after the video I asked my mom about the school there and she laughed and said "it was such a joke"
I've been to Celebration school
@@WinstonPoptart details please!
Clearly wasnt that bad if she managed to get an education and a job and afford you
Jaymee McAliece her mom might have left before she went to school
@@craigcode7103 What details would you like to know about the school? It is very close from Celebration. Like a good 20 minute walking distance.
Now it time for one on Golden Oak
Agreed!
I was about to say the same thing.
Any house there is my dream house
It's not even finished. Also, it's a completely different kind of community. Celebration is more like a regular upper-Middle Class neighborhood with properties starting at $200,000 or something, whereas Golden Oak is just a multimillionaire gated subdivision.
I still think Orlando in general is not very "classy." It just doesn't have enough wealthy like most other parts of the country. There's not enough restaurants, clubs, high-end stores to cater to the wealthy the way other major cities could.
Karlton est do you live in orlando? Celebration has millions of dollar homes. High end stores are millenia mall and outlet mall. Lots of high end shops.
I lived here and it’s really awesome, all of these issues are literally from when the town was first started initially, and now it’s really one of the best schools in the state
I own a mold remediation company in orlando and have been called to celebration so many times for mold and water damage.
That is everywhere in Florida. It downpours for 30mins everyday here. What do you expect?
Anyone back here after Disney just announced Storyliving, or is it just me?
That's how I got here! Never heard of anything like this! Did you come from the Jason video (I think that's his name)
Yea the Jason A Chan. I love his videos.
Even if Celebration wasn't the ideal model town, I still think there are plenty of lesson you can learn from it to further improve existing communities.
E-ManAnimates it’s still beautiful, the park is pretty cool too there’s also Christmas in celebration that gets pretty fun
Honestly, a part of me wants to live there.
E-ManAnimates I'd Move there...
I also go there to relax and eat. Such a peaceful neighborhood with lots of places to stroll.
Those lessons have been compiled by the Congress for the New Urbanism. Celebration followed most of the same guidelines.
I grew up in celebration. Lived there from when I was five to when I was eleven. It was a very interesting experience. The town itself is beautiful, and there’s a lot of things for kids to do in the town center. The people however leave a lot to be desired. I can’t remember the details but my parents were always aware of some new drama that everyone was going through. It was always such basic suburbian stuff too, like person x didn’t attend person y’s barbecue. They would just get real nasty with each other over really petty stuff.
The thing this, Celebration inspired other neighborhoods in Central Florida. I live in Avalon park, which is one of them.
I should also mention that Celebration Hospital is amazing. It looks like a hotel and the rooms are beautiful. It’s great being able to watch the Disney fireworks after giving birth.
When I was in Orange County CA in 2003, the builders called it "90 days from pour to door" -- they would build the houses so fast. And then the shit would hit the fan when folks moved in.
I do not feel it was much like EPCOT. EPCOT was to be only for people who worked at Disney. They were not to own any property, and could not stay after retirement. In exchange of not owning, they would always have the most up-to-date technologies in their homes, be able to use the monorail, have energy produced, food grown, and large international food/shopping areas. The schools, I imagine, would also (like everything else there) only be for residents.
no epcot was for everyone to live in
That's da culprit in your profile pic. I knew I recognized him. He was the lil bastard sweepin up all da field mice.
@@a_cowwithlegs Yes...that was the original concept for Epcot (acronym for Experimental Planned Community Of Tomorrow).Walt was still alive when it was first proposed,, but those who knew better told him as residents would have all those strictures and regulations, and no representational government--only the Disney organization--he would have to pay people to live there.
Still don't understand why disney had an issue with residents voting rather than just landowners. If he could create districts that allowed only landowner voting, why didn't that extend to a housing district too?
I went there a few years ago with my brother. He said he was scared to sneeze. Creepy and I can't get it into my head that the shops are real, the hospital is real etc. Just all seems like a toy town
This town slightly creeps me out, it reminds me of The Truman Show.
Celebration remiands me of ''Stepford''
Well the town In The Truman Show is in Florida. :o
Mostly it’s because we’re used to Metropolitan life that involves a different level of crime lol
@jakerrr the movie was filmed in Seaside, Florida.
jakerrr wrong in Florida
Moved here from the U.K. 3 years ago and I love living here. It’s a great place to live
Well, you know occasionally dump tea in the harbor while dressed as indigenous natives, right?
If Disney wanted a perfect town they shouldn’t have put it in Kissimmee...🤦♂️😂🤣
If Disney wanted a perfect town they shouldn't have let people move in to it.
John Stanley facts they should have just turned it into more theme park.
LMAO!!!
disney world is in kissimmee where else they gon put it 😭
I'm not going to lie, I absolutely love the idea of Celebration. I really want to visit! I wouldn't mind living in this type of a place either.
I love walking around celebration with my kids... there are plenty of parks, boardwalks, and the people are usually friendly. I have friends who own homes there and they joke around that they can never build a pool or put up a fence... Almost like they own the house just not the land....
This was fascinating! The whole concept of “Celebration” is so interesting and strange-I sort of can’t believe it exists. Thanks for putting this awesome video together!
As someone who just recently moved from Celebration, I really appreciated this two part series. My experience with Celebration started in 2005 and technically still continues to today.
This town is special because it's close enough to everything, but it's basically secluded. You're right next to the tourist traps and multiple families that need help, but you rarely see it. Celebration is a conundrum to many, but it used to be home.
I visited Celebration several years ago, and all I could think was I was in the Stepford Town.
I grew up there. My house was the one in the background when the body was being taken out.
I live in Celebration and absolutely love it. ...but Disney selling Town Center to Lexin was a horrible decision. Lexin is a horrible company and has zero quality standards. Their buildings are filthy, in need of major repair and they definitely are not honoring their agreement with Disney. ......but I definitely love living in Celebration. It's so incredible here!
I was there recently and that is what I noticed the most. I expected something out of "The Truman Show" but in that movie, the town seemed new and maintained. Celebration seems old and neglected
Bonnie Cribbs clarification needs to be addressed. Lexin controls DOWNTOWN, not the rest of the town.
Susan, I specified Town Center.
Sorry, Bonnie. I should have read it more carefully.
I live there two
as someone who lives in Orlando and visits celebration frequently I love this video and this channel. keep it up rob, I love all the detail you put in these videos
Thanks!
So what's Celebration like?
Martin Petersson Not OP but I was surprised by how community-oriented it was when I visited. Disney definitely achieved their goal on that front. Like, if you've lived there for a while and hang out in the local pub alone, you're probably going to end up seeing people you know anyway. To be honest, before I visited for the first time, I was expecting that everyone would be uptight and just keep to themselves and only live there because it's Disney, but there seems to be a real sense of comradery between the locals.
Nice, seems like a good place to live :)
I suppose live in the "single man's" version of this community.
An ultra modern, 500 unit high-rise Condominium.
Everything is astheticly pleasing if not a bit too uniform.
When it's time for the orchid in my elevator vestibule to be replaced another one exactly like it is brought in.
The staff is very nice but you can't get away with anything. Cameras track your every move. I can't even go from one residential floor to another without obtaining a six diget elevator code.
I even had to attend a new resident orientation after I bought my place. Me & one other new home owner were inundated with rules.
Just when I think it's all a little too perfect I walk outside & see a homeless man beating a shopping cart with a baseball bat.
this was really fun! I loved the sense of community and being able to have questions answered, I didn't have to wait too long because I only saw the premier thumbnail in my feed this morning. So the only con would probably be the wait, but it was still as entertaining, if not more than a regular upload!
The architectural style is very nice. I hope that it all stays well-maintained.
These videos about Celebration were AMAZING. I have been waiting a very long time for someone to delve this deep into the story behind the town. Thanks Rob!
I think I would have been disappointed if I was one of those original buyers. Expectations were too high in terms of what it was going to be like.
However, if I were to buy now, I think I'd have a better chance of being happy there. My expectations would be that it's a nice community of people who want to live close to the happiest place on earth. Plus, even for some of the most expensive houses up for sale, the real estate is actually more bang for your buck than Toronto (my home), so that would be great too!
Ultimately, I think it would depend on whether or not the reality of living near Disney would live up to the ideal of living near Disney.
Yes, we all want to live in the leftover sets from Pleasantville. I personally would prefer a Norman Rockwell inspired place or the town from Edward Scissorhands!
It still looks like a great place to me! It’s beautiful, and it looks safe and clean. I’d live there if I had the opportunity!
Fabulous use of Mickey cartoon B-Roll. The construction, the school. Aweosme!
This reminds me of a horror movie. Your car falls into a ditch and you look for help. Turns out you’re in a perfect little town, but there’s a dark secret that everyone is forced to keep.
I lived there for about 11 years. Loved every single bit of it. Mad lots of friends and memories.
Obviously there's lots of vocal feedback in regards to the premieres. I appreciate that! I just got the feature today so I'm testing it out with this video, but I currently don't have any plans set in stone for the future beyond that. I like the idea of being able to watch with other subscribers and chat, but I also understand that having a non-live video sit in a sub box for days can be annoying. So in the future if I use it again I'll try to set it up the night before rather than days before.
I just wish we could toggle premiers on/off.. I had 3 premier videos waiting in my subscription feed recently, so I think they're rolling it out more. It's just like a tease/"gotchya!"/psych! kind of thing when we realize it's not actually a video we can watch. Maybe some people like that, which is fine, but gah! Need to option to toggle off premiers! :)
Hey rob plays can you make a Disney history video on golden oaks
How about exercising restraint and just using it for special/big productions? There's no reason to use it on every video.
Please don’t use this feature...it’s annoying
I live in celebration so the place is actually really nice. The place has nice houses,great community, I go to school there and I go downtown often right after school. This place is quite great. The place also has rich and medium houses to make everyone not feel like their poor and everyone’s rich. Our school is now k-8. Also it is the same as most schools. It is very easy to be active hear. Yes celebration was bad at first but now it’s nice. Looking at the old time and not the new can really ruin our economy. This place isn’t perfect btw it is normal. We also have the town center that is great and a great place to go is upper crust. It is for some rich people and yes I have rich fwiends, but I live moderately. Showing these videos also shows that it hasn’t changed and it’s nice it really doesn’t need to. The only thing that changed is how great it is now and the f***in theater is closed. And to the end part this place is great and I took this entire video + some more to write this so saying the worst place to live is not very kind and while it might help you please be considering what effect it has on us. People on the internet can change people’s opinions so can you please at least change the title to “celebration,a nice place with a bad history” or something like that? If you do thank and if you don’t screw you(the aithiest way of saying bless you but I don’t believe in god).
Based on the title of the video, I was ready to hate on this video before I watched it. I own a home in Celebration and am quite sick of people who don't live here crapping on it. That said, this video was VERY well thought through and researched. Celebration is just a huge neighborhood with Disney roots. It has it's ups and downs for SURE. That said, it's one of a kind and a ton of fun. Yes the HOA fees are steep, the rules strict, and the home prices are high, but it keeps the town looking amazing and protects our investment. Great video.
I had no clue that Celebration was a part of Disney! Every time I go to Orlando I make a special trip to Celebration to eat at the Boston Seafood Restaurant.
@Tiny Princess I didn't know that either. But the way the town is laid out, you can tell Disney definitely had their input on the design. I swear I could picture 60's era cars in there and a community where everyone knows everyone. It almost looks like you are stepping back in time.
I would just like to thank you for providing such great content during these uncertain times
Celebration should have been used for the DCP housing instead of the apartments they live
im 20 now and to see how i lived there in my early child hood i had no idea how different the real world was
We visited several years ago and thought that we had entered Stepford.
It wasn't groundbreaking even at the time, it was riding a wave of neo-traditional communities begun primarily by the architectural firm Duany Plater-Zyberk. There was also Kentlands in Maryland, and Seaside in Florida (where The Truman Show was filmed).
Seaside and Watercolor Florida definitely have a creepy vibe under the surface.
A lot of new construction right now is having the same problem. Be careful what companies you buy from
I grew up in a town similar to Celebration (and by that I mean it had also been built and designed by Arvida, which had been one of the main contractors Disney sourced stuff from for Celebration); it's funky to see how similar our "town center" shopping areas are.
I live in Celebration. I can tell that, at least right now, it’s like any other town.
You're saying this so they don't have to "use the bees" again, aren't you?
What....???? You might want to drive round Florida again! Need some instate vacation time lol!
Growing up in the '60s, I was fascinated by all the urban renewal/city planning projects happening across the country. Out with the old and in with the new, which leaned heavily upon the prevailing modern architecture of the day, which intrigued me. When I first became aware of EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow) I was in awe of what was to be a huge leap forward at trying new ways of living, learning, working and co-existing with each other. At least that is what I had been led to believe. Suburbia was at this time beginning its full power outward expansion from most large cities and vast land areas were being constructed in what would become nothing more than places to raise families in monochromatic blandness. Places with no 'there'. Just houses and little more. Roads that went in endless curves and dead-ends to nowhere.
My family moved to a D.C. area suburb during the early days of this trend. I had two planned towns to observe nearby, Reston, Virginia, and Columbia, Maryland and my dad obliged my interest by driving there on Saturdays. EPCOT seemed to also want to address this 'just roads and houses to nowhere' and try something new, possibly trying several alternatives to reach the desired outcome, a new way of living.
To say I was disappointed when I first read about EPCOT construction commencing to build an amusement park is an understatement. I held out hope that one day Walt Disney's vision would be realized. The town Walt had wanted to build did eventually get built. This video helped me realize how that vision that seemed so ambitious in my youth become just another real estate transaction in the end.
I was actually born there in the Celebration hospital. Lived there up until 2015 but overall, it gave me a lot of good memories and helped me grow as a person later on.
Awesome how close is it to the theme parks? Can you walk there?
WellDeservedVacation.com no lmao it’s not a walking distance but Disney world is close by I’d say about 10 minutes away
Did it though? You guys were basically isolated from real people outside the bubble.
Another problem seems to me was that the homes were built too close together - "sardines in a can."
Was in Celebration recently and I was surprised at how old things looked. Peeling paint, roads that need resurfacing, etc. Not nearly as nice as the Truman Show. It looked like the whole place was in need of major maintenance.
My best friend dad collapsed at Cirque de Solei and was taken to Celebration Hospital. We were there and so went to the Hospital and I was freaked out. I didn't see but a few people and one person I saw literally popped out of one door and into another one. No one was in the hallways. It was too perfect and weird.
Nice job as always on this series, Rob - I learned a few things I didn’t know! My personal opinion is that all the stuff tying Celebration into the concept for EPCOT the city was something tacked on by PR people after the fact when people brought up the history of the area. Similar communities had already been built, like Seaside in the Panhandle; Disney just took the idea and kicked it up a notch. About the only thing developers learned from places like Celebration and Seaside was that they could build homes on smaller lots and charge more money by adding a few design flourishes and selling it as a walkable community. 😃
Interestingly from my observations from visits to Celebration, the whole walkable community thing never really happened as far as I could tell. Most of the time I never saw community members interacting with each other any more than in any other community, and the town center never really fulfilled its role as the shopping center for the community ( most people got in their cars and went shopping at the big boxes on US 192 or in Kissimmee). I was more likely to see people driving to the town center if they had a reason to go there from their homes - I remember the parking lots in the town center always being full of cars and few pedestrians. Still, I had friends who lived there, and they were mostly satisfied with their experience.
Over a decade a go I worked for an electrical company and for just over two years, all I did was wire and trim 4 giant houses on Aquila loops (only a few small breaks for other jobs). The people were great, to include the neighborhood people and home owners whose homes I was working on. On multiple occasions on the weekends, the owners would stop by and buy lunch for the workers. Another time, we did a 7 day OT push with another crew to have a section done in time for another trade. They were pleased of our efforts and gave each crew (two crews, two people each) a bottle of rum at the end of the day. It was pocket change to them, but was a great gesture that went a long way.
There already qas a town built by a company for its workers that was quaint, quiet and for the most part crime free with great school. It's been around for about 100 years and is still going strong!
Boulder City?
We lived in Orlando. After the town opened, we went to tour. It was idealic. I walked through home after home, dreaming that it was mine. The downtown just had a few shops with a little food store, wonderful restaurant, a clothing store. Just a dream Land, for sure. We left Florida in 2000, so never heard all this. Too bad. It was the perfect town.
I always wondered what the apartments looked like on the inside, but since I knew I couldn't afford them, and traffic always looked like a nightmare at the entrance of Celebration, I never took the time to look at the apartments on the inside. I did drive around the town once. I just thought the houses were a little too close together considering how much they cost. Oh, and I heard some horror stories about local Orlando area builders who built homes on the opposite side of Orlando during the boom. I heard of walls of new homes that just soaked up water like sponges when it rained (and it rained a lot in Florida).
Wish the housing would be pedestrian only streets like in disney. Mix some commercial in there too (still no vehicular traffic).
I grew up around Orlando and lived in a nice exclusive part of winter park when they announced celebration. They were able to sell those things for way more than the bank said they were worth so the appraisals often came in low. It was gimmicky and cheesy.
I miss the movie theater no one thought of it. Could always see shows on opening weekend with minimal crowds. Hinch it closed lol
Same here😯
You were the other 2 that always shared the theater with me?
"Hinch it closed lol" Zero idea what this means.
@@OMGWTFLOLSMH hence *
Rob
Thank you for this video. Amazing script quality and message. Felt like a 20/20 episode. I love Disney since my childhood and do practice THE ESCAPISM you talked about for the few days I am there. However, it’s nice for you to talk about the problems without appearing to be biased to appease them. Having said that, it will continue to be the Happiest Place in the World for me. Glad to re-join your channel.
Sounds like what has happened in Santa Fe New Mexico! All the rich Californians moved in, started causing the price of real estate up. They got into the local government and started passing laws to make sure that all the homes in a certain area had to conform to certain criteria. The people that work in Santa Fe, for the most part, can't afford to live there!
Jennie Frank *Cough*Toronto*Cough*
You know how white people do
That's just gross.
@@bandombeviews6035 Oh god, yes. I never thought I'd have to explain to anyone why a vacancy tax should exist, but here we are!
Dawg people come to California to do that. If ts a rich people problem not a California problem.
My daughter participated in the Disney College Program last fall and I had to take her to a post office while I was there visiting. We ended up in Celebration. I had heard of it and had always wanted to see the town. Such a creepy weird vibe there.
Black hole sun, won't you come...
Hahahahahaha brilliant! Perfect use of this lyric
Actually, the sun would turn into a white dwarf. Only massive stars have chance of turning into blackholes. Not as catchy, but correct. 😉
Awesome video. I didn't know anything about celebration and I've stayed in houses there several times during vacations. Never knew it was so...new nor that it was a disney venture.
Walt should have just played animal crossing
Fascinating background info on Celebration. We still loved our visit to Celebration, staying at the Bohemian Hotel - we just posted the video from our trip to Celebration on our channel.
My home there caught on fire. When the fire department showed up they were all dressed as Disney characters. The guy in the Mickey costume passed out of heat exhaustion. All in all it was a interesting day.
Lol what the heck
Dress in very flammable costumes..yup can't see that backfiring horribly
I believe everything I read on the internet
Strange, if i’m not mistaken, Celebration is covered by Reedy Creek’s emergency services, which although heavily influenced and managed by Disney Corp, is exempt from the Disney World nonsense. Another point is apparently Disney has their own security, and at times qazi police force. Wouldn’t Reedy Creek or the local sheriff be responsible for legitimate police force, not a private company?
@@jaysmith1408 dude the guy is joking.
I live in celebration! It is really nice with a great school. We do have a lot of people from other places. We have people knocking on are doors sometimes. But it’s actually really nice. Kids walk down town to go eat after school.
I can see why you would think Disney making ”the perfect town” would be a good idea, but look any deeper and you will easily see that perfection in impossible, especially when a huge company is doing it on their own dime
I actually live Celebration not bad have my greatest friends here one my my greatest Memories here and has one of the greatest Schools which I go to all in all great town, nice to see a video about my home
This town is the closest we'll ever get to EPCOT actually happening, only for it to become like every other American town in the end.
Visiting Celebration is a great experience, especially at Christmas time. They make it snow every hour starting at 6pm and over the years the quality of the "snow" improved so much that it looks real, especially on a cold night. Residents deck out their homes with lights and decorations, they have carolers stroll around the town square, they set up an ice rink for the kids and sell hot cocoa and cookies. Idyllic. Yes, it's like walking through a movie set. Yes, it has a 1950's feel. Yes, it's like the Truman Show, but honestly I think I'd rather visit than live there.
We lived there for 14 years 2004-2018. I've lived all over the country and have never seen anything like Celebration. It's not perfect but it's the most amazing place I've ever lived. I wish it was the model for builders/developers. Currently we are moving around b/c of career changes etc. but I'd be really happy to live there again some time in the future. Great quality of life that I haven't seen elsewhere.
flclarkinc that's awesome! How close were you guys to the actual theme parks? Like could you walk to the theme parks or was it more than like a few miles away? Thanks
WellDeservedVacation.com it’s very close by car. You *can* walk but I would never recommend it. I’d say a 10 or 15 minute drive which is nothing in central Florida
When I visited celebration in my early 20’s, I wanted to live there so badly. This was late 90’s