Shanghai Disney Under Way

CEO: It will be 'both authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese'
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 8, 2011 11:41 AM CDT
Shanghai Disney Under Way
In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, a celebration is held for the start of construction work on the Shanghai Disneyland in Shanghai, east China, Friday, April 8, 2011.   (AP Photo/Xinhua, Ren Long)

After a long wait, Mickey’s new home in China is officially under construction. The iconic mouse joined Disney CEO Robert Iger and top Shanghai officials—as well as Goofy, Princess Jasmine, and other friends—for a groundbreaking ceremony today at the future site of Shanghai Disneyland, the Los Angeles Times reports. The $3.7 billion undertaking marks “a defining moment in our company's history,” Iger told crowds. It will be “both authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese.”

It’s a joint project with state-owned Chinese firms known collectively as the Shanghai Shendi Group. Little has been revealed about its layout, but it won’t have the usual Main Street entrance; instead, there will be 11 acres of green space and the biggest Storybook Castle yet. The “role model” park, scheduled to open in 2014, “will improve Shanghai's international profile as a world famous tourist destination,” said Shanghai’s mayor. For Disney, meanwhile, it means access to a burgeoning consumer market: Some 330 million people live within three hours of the future park. (More Mickey Mouse stories.)

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