Anaheim GardenWalk Progress Thread

[FutureImagineer]

Intro
Welcome to the Anaheim GardenWalk Progress Thread! This thread, which had originally featured concept art and a preview to the immersive project, now features everything you need to know about The Shops at Anaheim GardenWalk, ranging from new store openings to future additions to the property. This thread will be updated as I receive new information about the GardenWalk.
Links

• The Anaheim GardenWalk Website - the official website
• Disney and More article - discusses the possible hotel plans
• OC Register article - discusses the possible hotel plans
• WATG Website - discusses the potential expansion area

Galleries - Looking for pictures? You found the right place.

• Concept Art - This includes renderings of the GardenWalk project.
• Maps - This includes maps and overviews of the GardenWalk complex.

Fashion - Want to go shopping but don't know what's open? Here's a complete list of stores.

• Open! All original retail venues are open.
  • Ann Taylor Loft
  • Chico's
  • Fresh Produce
  • G Stage
  • Georgiou
  • Goodies USA
  • Harley-Davidson of Anaheim
  • Hollister
  • Kay Jewelers
  • Lush
  • Lux Aveda Salon/Spa
  • Madison & Co.
  • Momotree
  • OC Cellular Accessories
  • O'Neill
  • Rami
  • Red Apparel
  • Retrospect
  • Runway 5
  • Skechers
  • Sunglass Hut
  • The Body Shop
  • Tommy Bahama
  • Whitehouse|Blackmarket

Food - Getting hungry? These restaurants are waiting to serve you.

• Open - These restaurants and eateries are open and are serving the public.
  • Bar Louie
  • Bubba Gump Shrimp Co
  • California Pizza Kitchen
  • Cinnabon
  • Fuzziwig's Candy Factory
  • Johnny Rockets
  • Marble Slab Creamery
  • McCormick & Schmicks Grille
  • Mrs. Fields
  • P.F. Chang's China Bistro
  • Palama Hawaiian Fusion BBQ
  • Pop the Cork Wine Bar
  • Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory
  • Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine
  • San Sai Japanese Grill
  • Sbarro
  • Sertinos Coffee Café
  • Submarina
  • Tacone Flavor Grill
  • The Cheesecake Factory
  • The Great Steak & Potato Company
• Opening Soon - These restaurants and eateries will be opening soon.
  • None schedules to open at this time
• Not Yet Open - These restaurants and eateries will be opening soon.
  • Auntie Anne's
  • Fire+Ice
  • La Salsa
  • Robeks Juice

Fun - Whether you want to relax or get active, here's where you'll want to go.

• Open! All original entertainment venues are open.
  • 24 Hour Fitness
  • 300 Anaheim Bowling & Entertainment Center
  • Cigar Den
  • CinemaFusion Theatre featuring IMAX
  • Discount Tickets & Tours Travel Center
  • Heat Ultra Lounge
  • Lux Aveda Salon/Spa
  • Memoryland
  • Pop the Cork Wine Bar

Disney/GardenWalk Plans

Status: Disney signed four-year partnership on Oct. 28, 2008
Description: As of now, Disney and the GardenWalk have signed a four-year agreement, allowing promotions and advertising on each other's properties. Disneyland Annual Passholders now get a discount at various Anaheim GardenWalk stores and restaurants. Any further plans between Disney and the GardenWalk are still mostly in the planning stages; however, a future agreement may include new ownership of the GardenWalk under the Disney company. Other possibilities are the future hotels and timeshares becoming Disney-operated while the complex and hotels remain under different ownership.

Hotels

Opening Date: Unknown
Status: Planning, Postponed
Description: There are either two or three proposed hotels that are planned to be built on the east side of the GardenWalk. There is planned to be 866 rooms among the hotels. The hotels will have a large outdoor deck above the shopping area that includes pools and other amenities.

Timeshares

Opening Date: Unknown
Status: Planning, Postponed
Description: There are 400 timeshare units planned to be built on the west side of the GardenWalk. They will be built above the parking garage and will feature a private rooftop pool and recreation courtyard. The timeshares are detached from the hotels; however, it is possible that they will be under the same owner.

Potential Expansion

Opening Date: Unknown
Status: Planning, Postponed
Description: This new addition to the GardenWalk would be located in the northern area of the block extending from the GardenWalk to Harbor Blvd along Disney Way. The expansion, though not yet approved, would provide guests with more retail, restaurants, and entertainment. The new addition would also include a new garden and an abundance of plants and shrubbery. The potential expansion would also provide a new entrance to the GardenWalk that is located less than five minutes walking distance from the Disneyland Resort.

[FutureImagineer]

Hi, everyone! Once again, Welcome to the Anaheim GardenWalk Progress Thread!
This thread has been moved from a previous thread that had been titled Anaheim GardenWalk. From now on, I will no longer be using the original thread for updates about the GardenWalk; I will use this thread. Thanks and remember to check back for news.

[FutureImagineer]

News Update:

August 4 - Chicos will open.
August 5 - The Great Steak & Potato Company will open (moved from July 31).
August 15 - Madison & Co will open.
August 15 - Momotree will open.

Johnny Rockets will not be opening on August 14; it has been moved back.

Also, don't forget that Heat Ultra Lounge is now open, serving guests 21 and older during the evening.

[Darkbeer]

I wish I could share more, but don't expect to find "Pop the Cork" open on weekday days, as they plan to open at 4 PM on weekdays....

All I can say is that came straight from the Boss!

[Scurvy Pirate]

Originally Posted by Darkbeer

I wish I could share more, but don't expect to find "Pop the Cork" open on weekday days, as they plan to open at 4 PM on weekdays....

All I can say is that came straight from the Boss!

So the boss "Popped your Cork?"

I'm sorry. Couldn't resist.

[nbodyhome]

I didn't realize so much was open there, I walked past every day on the way back to the Marriott. It always seemed so quiet late at night, I'm looking forward to when more is added and there are more people out later.

[KeepnLuciferHuntn]

Thanks for the update!

Very cool...other places to eat at

[Lulubelle]

Thanks for keeping this so up to date. As we can see, many dates change frequently!

[FutureImagineer]

Thanks, yeah I know sometimes, the new stores and restaurants become delayed and pushed back, but I'm on it.

[TP2000]

I walked through GardenWalk last Monday afternoon around 4:00 pm, and then again Monday night around 9:00 pm. The place was DEAD. D-E-A-D. DEAD!

I made a point of checking out a few key places, and that included Pop The Cork at both times. That wine bar is owned by Lucille Kring, the City Councilwoman who originally voted to allow SunCal to build 1,500 shoebox condos in the Resort District. But then of course that was before the housing market imploded and SunCal abandoned Anaheim and their loyal lapdog politicians like a batch of bad Xerox fliers at an open house that no one shows up for. But that's another story, isn't it?

As for Pop The Cork, it is in a horrible location up on the upper level of this morgue of a shopping mall. No location around it is open, and absolutely no one was in the place at 4:00 pm. No one except Ms. Kring and two other gentlemen she appeared to know, as they sat at one of the many unused tables drinking wine and talking business over some paperwork. When I walked through again at 9:00 pm the place was just as dead, except for one employee staring at the half empty shelves of wine bottles and one (count 'em, ONE) customer sitting at a patio table alone with a glass of wine. FUN! WHIMSY! WINE! DESOLATION!

The rest of the mall was just as deserted. The clothing stores all contained exactly one salesgirl, standing at their cash registers, all looking very bored. There wasn't a customer in sight in any of the clothing stores. A few of the fast food joints had maybe one person buying something, but many were just as empty as the clothing stores. The Aveda salon had two beauticians sitting in the salon chairs in front of the giant plate glass windows talking about whatever it is beauticians talk about when there isn't a customer in sight and no appointments on the books.

The movie theater had about a half dozen employees standing around talking with each other, with no noticeable customer anywhere. At 9:00 pm we went into the 300 bowling alley and we saw another group of mall visitors! It was two older couples around 60 years age, looking very much like tourists on vacation. They walked past us and the one man in the panama hat said "Don't bother! They're charging 25 bucks per lane just to bowl!". About a dozen 300 employees were all standing around the lobby, and one of them came right up to us and welcomed us. We explained we were just looking around, and he offered us a tour. He did say that lane rental starts at 25 dollars per person, and that it includes shoes. The 300 bowling center looked very snazzy, and you could tell they spent a good deal of cash on the design, furnishings, lighting and audio system. There wasn't a single person bowling, and when we left and said our goodbyes after our complimentary tour, the place went back to being empty.

The only part of the mall that showed any sign of life was the restaurant strip on Katella. Those places all looked to be about half full, with most people sitting inside and all of the outdoor patios completely empty. At least there were some people in there who weren't employees, but from what I know of the restaurant industry a dining room that is only half full at 9:00 pm is a signal of a location that is really struggling. When I walked by at 4:00 pm all of the locations were deserted. So obviously the "dinner rush" is weak to nonexistent at GardenWalk.

Overall, this is a mall that is really struggling. It's only about half full of working shops and restaurants and offerings. And its design is rather sterile and bland and rather devoid of greenery, and I have no idea how they can call it "GARDENWalk" with a straight face.

If this place had opened in 2002 like originally planned, or 2004 or even 2006, it would have stood a chance at opening. But with the local economy tanking by the day, and the tourist crowd not leaving the always packed Downtown Disney, I'm not sure how they can make it.

They've got about three more weeks of "peak" summer crowds, and then they hit the off season. Weekends might get an uptick, but again you are relying on locals from a struggling economy and a rather ratty, working class neighborhood that surrounds that mall. This is definitely not Irvine or Laguna Niguel. It's working class central Anaheim, and locals are going to be needed to keep this place afloat.

I predict rather dire days ahead for GardenWalk, at least for a year or two.

If they announce tomorrow the rumored hotels that Al Lutz has mentioned, and the bulldozers move in on Monday, the earliest they could open would be Christmas, 2010. But without a mention in sight, and no news from Al other than the rumor that the owners are now trying to sell the mall, the earliest either hotels or timeshares could open there would be 2011.

The way its going, I'd bet two churros nothing opens there until 2012 at the earliest. Someone should tell the bowling alley they might want to consider throwing in a basket of chicken wings in with the lane rental fee if that is the case.

[AaronInCal]

I left GardenWalk this past Wednesday night just before 10:00pm after seeing a movie in a theater with about 6 other people. The mall was quite deserted, but the restaurants on Katella were all quite busy. So I am sure it depends on the day of the week for them. While they may not be packed constantly, I think it's easy to say the restaurants are doing well. Maybe not gangbusters, but doing well enough. Walking to the theaters there around 7pm, there was a near non-stop stream of cars pulling into the parking garage. Most likely for the restaurants. But the rest of the mall.. Wow! I have a feeling a year from now, that place will have even less stores than they do now.

[SpectroMan]

Like I've been saying from the start - it's all going to be closed within 6 months except for the restaurants. All the hotels within walking distance still do not comprise enough of a client base to keep this place busy, and no locals are going to go out of their way to shop at stores they can just as easily find at Main Place, the Block, or South Coast Plaza. It's not brain surgery!

Consider a DLH guest with AMC right there. Why would they elect to walk or take a taxi all the way over here to choose the Movie Experience? With no Peoplemover or similar in sight for years to come, the Resort guests are not going to come. Do any of the surrounding nicer hotels have advertising in the rooms for this place? At all? I guarantee 85% of DL's guests don't even know GW exists. Sigh.

[AaronInCal]

The place still has a long way to go. It's in a bad location to really pull in people walking from Disneyland. Even the movie theater which is open now, has no sign saying what it is. All that is there right now is 2 huge screens on the outside showing previews above the main doors. But nothing that says "The Movie Experience." Although I believe they are still doing finishing touches so hopefully a sign is coming. The whole mall seems to be taking forever to fully be open.

[FutureImagineer]

News Update:

Sorry, I was away for a week and wasn't able to update the thread, but I'm back with some news.

August 4 - Chicos opened.
August 15 - Madison & Co. and Momotree will open.
August 15 - The Great Steak & Potato Company will open (moved from August 5).
August 15 - Sbarro will open.

Some new venues have been planned for the GardenWalk; these include
-Goodies Apparel
-Lush
-Flame Broiler
-Sertino's Coffee Café

However, the GardenWalk also lost some expected tenants:
-Brooks Brothers
-Sun's Up

The upcoming events at the GardenWalk include
-Back to School Concert Series in the Gala Garden - Sept. 6,13,20 at 7 pm
-Harley Davidson Motorcycle Show - Sept. 28 - 10am-4pm

Also, I've added some tentative opening dates onto the first post. These appear next to names in the "Not Yet Open" catagory and are the expected but not official opening dates.

That's all for now. I will be here for a week to report new info; however, I'll be away again the week after. Thanks.

[yoyoflamingo]

Originally Posted by TP2000

The movie theater had about a half dozen employees standing around talking with each other, with no noticeable customer anywhere. At 9:00 pm we went into the 300 bowling alley and we saw another group of mall visitors! It was two older couples around 60 years age, looking very much like tourists on vacation. They walked past us and the one man in the panama hat said "Don't bother! They're charging 25 bucks per lane just to bowl!". About a dozen 300 employees were all standing around the lobby, and one of them came right up to us and welcomed us. We explained we were just looking around, and he offered us a tour. He did say that lane rental starts at 25 dollars per person, and that it includes shoes. The 300 bowling center looked very snazzy, and you could tell they spent a good deal of cash on the design, furnishings, lighting and audio system. There wasn't a single person bowling, and when we left and said our goodbyes after our complimentary tour, the place went back to being empty.

Interesting, since here are the rates:
http://www.3hundred.com/hours/?loc=300anaheim