| In earlier articles, Norm Doerges explained some of the | | | | heavy exits and entrances in the summer months. So |
| fundamentals of design programming - the relationship | | | | when they began to plan for this new zone, they went |
| between attendance and capacity, between | | | | to the existing thoroughfare and measured the width |
| economics and the guest experience. In this interview, | | | | of the main street. Again, recognizing that there had |
| he explains how these principles worked in actual | | | | been a flow problem in the one area, they added |
| situations, how they were instrumental in the success | | | | additional footage to their measurement to provide |
| of shows and attractions, and what the consequences | | | | what they thought would be a solution for the new |
| were for those who chose to ignore them. | | | | zone. They came back to the design team and |
| Question: You had previously mentioned that it's not | | | | announced that the pathway for the new zone |
| just clients who have been known to disregard design | | | | needed to be sixty feet wide. On the surface it |
| programming, but operators, designers, and even | | | | seemed like they had learned from previous mistakes |
| management. Are there any particular examples that | | | | and had come up with a viable solution. |
| you could share with us? | | | | Question: Problem solved, everyone was happy, right? |
| Norm Doerges ("ND"): There are two things that come | | | | ND: Actually, this announcement completely upset the |
| to mind: one is a more a general recollection, the other | | | | architects. To them, this was like being told you have |
| a specific experience. | | | | to put a runway in front of all your attractions. All their |
| Seeing The Whole Picture | | | | efforts at creating a charming atmosphere would be |
| ND: Before design programming was put in place, | | | | ruined. Traditionally, buildings in theme parks were |
| designers were primarily responsible for area | | | | designed based on forced perspective - a manipulation |
| development. This includes the design of all pathways | | | | of scale achieved by building relative to other objects. |
| to and from attractions within a theme park. If a | | | | For example, if you want a building facade to appear |
| designer wanted the architecture, in relation to the area | | | | larger than it actually is, you make the lampposts |
| development, to feel cozy and intimate, he'd make the | | | | smaller, you make the sidewalks narrower. This |
| pathways narrow. If he wanted it to feel open and | | | | principle still holds true today. Of course, if your |
| expansive, he would make them wide. But this | | | | walkway is sixty feet wide, your building has to be built |
| approach didn't give any consideration to the numbers | | | | closer to actual scale - forced perspective no longer |
| of people that would use these pathways, nor to the | | | | works because the relationship between objects is |
| relative capacity required. Consequently, some areas | | | | now thrown off balance. So when the architects |
| were overly congested and others had more space | | | | heard that their walkways were bigger, they began |
| than necessary. | | | | drawing all their buildings bigger. Well, you can imagine |
| Planning For Parades | | | | what this did to the cost - everything started going |
| Question: What about parades? Were there any new | | | | through the roof. All of the sudden the estimates were |
| ideas that came into play regarding the parades? | | | | coming in way over budget. |
| ND: The parade route was another design issue that | | | | Solutions |
| was rarely considered before now. Parade routes | | | | As it was, there were essentially two parties behind |
| were generally decided upon after the theme park | | | | the brewing dilemma: an operator who didn't |
| was built. Consequently, when it came to actual | | | | understand design programming, and a live |
| operations, the operating group had a difficult time | | | | entertainment person who wanted to have a parade |
| finding a parade route that used existing pathways. | | | | route. When we were brought in to resolve the |
| The routes were too narrow, they had turns that were | | | | situation, we decided the first step was to take the |
| too sharp, or there was limited viewing space for the | | | | parade out of the initial equation and figure out how |
| parade. From an operating perspective, this made | | | | wide the walkway should be just for guest traffic. Well, |
| parades terribly difficult to manage. | | | | when you ran the math based on actual data, it turned |
| By introducing a design programming approach, we | | | | out that only a twenty-foot walkway was really |
| were able to resolve many of these issues. The first | | | | needed. So now instead of a mile of sixty-foot wide |
| thing we found was that we needed twenty feet to | | | | architectural concrete, all stamped and textured, we |
| accommodate a marching band. Then in order to | | | | find that twenty works nicely. Furthermore, by reducing |
| provide viewing space, there needed to be five feet | | | | the size of the walkway, all the buildings could become |
| on either side - on a flat surface people really couldn't | | | | smaller in scale and the use of forced perspective |
| see the parade beyond five feet. Finally, there needed | | | | could once again be utilized. Now instead of being way |
| to be circulation space during the time of the parade, | | | | over budget, we actually came in under budget |
| which could last up to fifty minutes. In order to | | | | because the pathway could be smaller than anyone |
| accommodate this circulation, an additional five feet | | | | originally thought it needed to be. |
| was required. In the end, there needed to forty feet of | | | | Q: So in both instances you had parties that were |
| width throughout the length of the parade route. Once | | | | trying to design based on limited information. |
| the team understood this, a design could be developed | | | | ND: Yes. They were trying to do their best, but they |
| that met the operational requirements, while at the | | | | didn't understand the whole picture, which is exactly |
| same time address the architectural needs of the | | | | what the design program is meant to do. The first time |
| specific theme. | | | | these methodologies were used in the complete |
| Controlling the Crowds | | | | design of a theme park was in the early eighties. It |
| ND: The more specific instance of design programming | | | | was the first opportunity we had to thoroughly test |
| influencing how Disney came to develop its parks | | | | design programming. |
| involved the development of a new zone within a large | | | | Q: And how did it do? |
| theme park. The operators had always known that | | | | ND: It was the first time in our experience that a theme |
| the main thoroughfare became overly crowded during | | | | park didn't require retrofitting after it opened. |