Disney to develop residential communities with new 'Storyliving by Disney' business

Posted: Wednesday February 16, 2022 9:25am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

The Walt Disney Company has today announced plans to introduce Storyliving by Disney, a new business to develop master-planned, new home communities with the attention to detail and special touches that are Disney hallmarks.

Storyliving by Disney

According to Disney, the "vibrant new neighborhoods are infused with our special brand of magic. Each community will feature distinctively designed spaces, unique amenities and Disney’s brand of world-renowned service."

At each location, including some neighborhoods for residents ages 55+, Disney cast members trained in the company’s guest service will operate the community association. Through a club membership, Disney will also provide access to curated experiences, such as wellness programming; entertainment ranging from live performances to cooking classes; philanthropic endeavors; seminars and much more.

Storyliving by Disney

The first location will be in Cotino, a Storyliving by Disney community, will be built in the heart of the Coachella Valley in Rancho Mirage, Calif. For additional information and updates, visit www.storylivingbydisney.com.

Storyliving by Disney

Hear from Disney Parks Chairman Josh D'Amaro talk about the new Storyliving by Disney concept.

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MisterPenguinApr 02, 2024

https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2024/03/behind-the-magic-of-cotino-the-first-storyliving-by-disney-community/

MireilleMar 11, 2024

That's awesome! I hate having to go to the municipal birthday facility to celebrate :(... Here's a picture from my last birthday celebration.

tancMar 08, 2024

My favorite comment:

MisterPenguinMar 08, 2024

With Storyliving, you can do extraordinary things, like celebrate a birthday in your own home!!!

Sir_CliffDec 09, 2023

Presumably they already have a sense of the interest in the Cotino project, so this suggests to me they think it's strong. On their website they state that "Pre-sales appointments for the initial home release by Shea Homes are now full" and have a waiting list for future releases in early-2024. As it's mainly a licensing venture with established property developers, I also assume the basics are more or less figured out in terms of how everything will work in practice.

JoeCamelDec 09, 2023

But if the suckers um marks prospects see what it really is sales will suffer? Presales are the manna

BocabearDec 07, 2023

They really should get Cotino up and running before beginning another project. Have they even broken ground on it? Once they can show the success story of that project, the NC project would be a lot easier to market and sell...but right now all we have are pretty concept pictures and some gobbledygoop about a big table in the 55+ area, and some landscaped park areas around the complex ( like every other gated community in the area)

Basil of Baker StreetDec 07, 2023

Hopefully they'll use the same loofah code as The Villages. Keeps things less confusing.

WoundedDreamerDec 07, 2023

Fair point. Though, I'm still not sold on this business unit. One of the lessons Bob Iger has taken from the Chapek years has been quality over quantity. This business unit is noncore to Parks and Resorts business. Unlike the other business units that are mutually reinforcing (Parks+Cruises= extended vacation package or Parks+DVC= both businesses are stronger), this feels like it has only tenuous ties to existing offerings. And these projects don't strike me as something that only Disney can do. This looks like a fairly generic housing development. If this contributes to brand dilution, then it might not be worth the royalty check. I am willing to be proven wrong on this. And honestly, I am very interested in seeing how this project plays out.

MisterPenguinDec 06, 2023

$60 Billion is already dedicated to the parks for the next 10 years. And even if this was a cash outlay and not just a licensing of the Disney brand, then the same question can be asked: Why build a new cruise ship? invest in the parks! Why make new movies? invest in the parks! Disney is more than parks.

Batman'sParentsDec 06, 2023

Got to market to the half-backs as well.

SaucyBoyDec 06, 2023

Sign me up!! As a North Carolinian this excites me even though I know I’ll never be able to afford living in there with a teachers salary 😂

UNCgolfDec 06, 2023

It's in a strange location IMO. From what I can tell, it's right outside Pittsboro (a very small town) and near Jordan Lake but not actually at the lake. It's probably about 45 minutes to downtown Raleigh from there (assuming no traffic), and about 30 minutes to the UNC campus in Chapel Hill. I think getting to the center of Durham would be about 40 minutes. That's not really a retirement location, and there are better places to live in the area if you want easy access to Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill. I guess maybe if you worked at Research Triangle Park? That's only about 30 minutes away, although Cary is much closer to RTP and I'm not sure what would make you choose living here over Cary unless it's cheaper. I assume they will be charging a premium for this "Disney" development, though.