.v 7.1.» . thtAvimvl o I. ,__. ...u . ..-..— b . .. -.au .14 : 'I n ‘ In a» fin Harmwrv. AV IllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllI 9 3 1293 01712 8772 This is to certify that the dissertation entitled STAKEHOLDER AGENDA BUILDING: AN ANALYSIS OF DISNEY'S AMERICA presented by ”Linda Diane Heeks . has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements for 105, .0. degree in WQ/WZZ Date /02/é7/9 7 MS U is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Institution 0-12771 LIBRARY Michigan State University PLACE lN RETURN BOX to remove this checkout from your record. To AVOID FINES return on or before date due. DATE DUE MTE DUE MTE DUE 1m WM“ STAKEHOLDER AGENDA BUILDING: AN ANALYSIS OF DISNEY’S AMERICA By Linda Diane Meeks A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Resource Development/Urban Studies 1998 ABSTRACT STAKEHOLDER AGENDA BUILDING: AN ANALYSIS OF DISNEY’S AMERICA By Linda Diane Meeks This study is an attempt to examine the relationship of stakeholder agendas to issues related to a proposed development. The study questions whether the most influential and financially secure stakeholder groups supporting a project are able to influence the outcome. The researcher examined the events related to the Walt Disney Company’s proposed theme park - Disney’s America - in Prince William County, Virginia. The researcher’s purpose was to analyze the stakeholder response to change. Theme parks and amusement parks have been a part of America’s culture for decades. Parks are planned as part of shopping malls, casinos, and urban entertainment centers. With each park that is planned, challenges are presented to urban planners and policy makers when it is time to determine the impact a development may have on the community. Content analysis of randomly selected articles that appeared in the Washington Post and New York Times from November 1993 through November 1994. Chi-square analysis determined the strength of relationships between variables selected for the study. Variables included the type of article, the name of the newspaper, the theme of the article, and the tone of the article. Based on the findings of the content analysis, when communities plan for developments there will be a need to understand stakeholders that represent all facets of a community. It is especially important to understand and appreciate the influence grassroots organizations may have concerning impacts related to such developments. Copyright by LINDA DIANE MEEKS 1998 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to extend my sincere thanks to my major advisor, Dr. Cynthia Fridgen, who worked with me on this project. Without her patience and guidance, this dissertation would not have become a reality. I am also grateful to the following committee and faculty members from the Department of Resource Development and the Urban Affairs Program who assisted with my research and other aspects of my doctoral program: John Schweitzer, Mark Wilson, Kenneth Verburg, June Thomas, Leighton L. Leighty, Thomas Edens, Robert Anderson, Frank Fear, and Peter Kakela. I would also like to thank the Department of Resource Development, the Office of Diversity and Pluralism, the Urban Affairs Program, and the Graduate School for providing the resources and guidance so necessary for the completion of my program. A special thanks goes to my immediate family and extended family of fi'iends who supported me throughout this experience. Thank you. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY 1 Background of the Problem .............................................................................. 1 Problem Statement .......................................................................................... . 3 History of the Dynamics .................................................................................... 4 Environmental Costs & Benefits 8 Economic Development ..................................................................................... 9 Purpose ofthe Study & Research QuestIon821 Definition of Terms ........................................................................................... 12 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................. 14 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 14 Economic Development .................................................................................... 15 Sustainable Community Development.............................................................l9 Stakeholders ...................................................................................................... l9 Stakeholders Response to Outside Economic Development.............................23 Elites as Stakeholders ........................................................................................ 25 Stakeholders and Decision Making ................................................................... 28 History ofOutdoor Amusement and Theme Parks28 ' Related Cases ..................................................................................................... 45 CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................................ 52 Introduction ...................................................................................................... .52 Purpose ............................................................................................................. .52 Study Design .................................................................................................... .54 Research Questions .......................................................................................... .54 Data Collection Instruments .............................................................................. 55 Content Analysis .............................................................................................. .56 vi CHAPTER 4 FINDINGS ................................................................................................................... .60 Newspaper Content Analysis ........................................................................... 63 The Stakeholders ............................................................................................. 64 Opponents Tactics ............................................................................................. 65 Supporters Tactics ............................................................................................. 71 CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS76 Thoughts for Further Research ......................................................................... 82 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................... 84 APPENDIX A Background on Theme Parks ................................................... 93 APPENDIX B Grassroots Lobbying Phases: A Typical Mobilization Campaign .......................................................................... 99 APPENDIX C Content Analysis Code ........................................................ 100 APPENDIX D Per Capita Personal Income and Earnings Comparisons in Selected NorthemVirginiaCounties ...................................................... 101 vii LIST OF TABLES Table l - Consumer Spending on Recreation and Entertainment ..................................... 39 Table 2 - Page by Tone ..................................................................................................... 61 Table 3 - Paper by Tone .................................................................................................... 62 Table 4 - Theme by Tone .................................................................................................. 62 Table 5 - Page by Theme .................................................................................................. 63 Table 6- Opponents of Disney’s America and their issues ................................................ 71 Table 7 - Annual Prince William County revenues and outlays from proposed theme park operanons73 Table 8 — Supporters of the Disney’s America project and their issues ............................ 75 Table 9 — Grassroots Lobbying Phases .......................................................... 100 Table 10 — Per Capita Personal Income and Earnings Comparison in Selected Northern Virginia Counties .................................................................................. 101 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1- Historic Sites Within an Hours Drive of Disney’s America... ............................ 7 Figure 2 - Stakeholder Policy Process ........................................................................... 23 Figure 3 - Stakeholder Model ......................................................................................... 56 ix Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY Backgroundcfjhflmhlem Construction of a shopping center, landfill, factory, stadium, theme park, or any development that is perceived to be harmfirl to any amenities enjoyed by nearby residents presents a challenge to community stakeholders involved in the decision-making process. Developments can be perceived as harmful because of the possibility of environmental degradation, change in the demographics of the community, and a growth or reduction in the population. Community stakeholders can include government officials, business owners, residents, non-profit organizations, or anyone who has a “stake” in the outcome of a project. At times developments invite additional controversy when issues concerning sustainable development and grth management become involved. Sustainable development is defined as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (Blowers, 1994). Whereas grth conveys the idea of a physical or quantitative expansion of the economic system, development is a qualitative concept incorporating notions of improvement and progress (Susskind, 1987). The development process includes cultural, social, and economic dimensions, as well as the distribution of resources. However, when community leaders attempt to set standards, allocate resources, or make 2 policy in a contemporary society, one can often expect a fight (Susskind, 1987). In the case of Disney’s America, a proposed Walt Disney Company theme park and commercial complex, community leaders were faced with making decisions concerning a major economic-development project that some community stakeholders considered a threat to the environment and historic landmarks in Prince William County, Virginia. Often short-term goals supersede the sustainable development goals of resource conservation, environmental quality, and public participation in the decision making process (Blowers, 1994). The Disney’s America project is only one example of how an economic development proposal can come into conflict with the interests of stakeholders at the local and even national level. With that particular project, and other similar projects, the stakeholders had a variety of agendas they wanted to promote for the area. Their various agendas included increased employment for the region, improved infrastructure and service delivery, increased tourism revenue, and maintenance of environmental quality. This study will examine the behavior of stakeholders seeking to advance their agendas when it comes to dealing with the politics of development and will develop a model for stakeholder agenda analysis that can be applied to similar developments. In November 1993, the Walt Disney Company proposed building a theme park and commercial complex, - Disney’s America -, on a 3,000-acre site in Prince William County near the communities of Haymarket and Manassas. Prince William County, with a population of 240,000, is located in the Northern Virginia Piedmont (Pearson, 1994). It is a region extending westward from Manassas to the Blue Ridge Mountains and 3 southward from Harpers Ferry. The region contains more than two dozen Civil War battlefields and the homes of four of the first five presidents of the United States. The Disney’s America entertainment complex was scheduled to be built during the years 1994 through 1998 at a cost of more than $600 million (Pearson, 1994). Histounfihemmamics The neighboring communities of Manassas and Haymarket understandably had different agendas for growth in their communities. The community of Manassas was interested in maintaining its pastoral lifestyle without the intrusion of sprawling development that ofien results in increased traffic, increased air pollution, strip malls, and an influx of “strangers”. In contrast, the community of Haymarket was open to the idea of the development because people there had a need for increased employment opportunities, improved infrastructure, and services. Other threats to the Manassas National Battlefield Park, located three miles fiom Disney’s site, have occurred. In 1986 the area was rezoned to permit a planned mixed- use district, and two years later developers sought to build a shopping mall adjacent to the battlefield. Residents were expecting a corporate park with retail space, but they were not ready for a regional shopping mall. Attorneys for the developer defeated a challenge by preservationists to block construction of the mall because the preservationists lacked the ability to show they would suffer irreparable harm if the shopping mall was built. The legal issues involved with the shopping center controversy included (1) whether Prince William County’s zoning laws permitted the development of a shopping center in a mixed-use area, (2) should residents have been apprised of the developer’s 4 intentions when the zoning changes were made; and, (3) whether the clients were deprived of procedural due process by the developer’s changing position on the scope of the project. I! S 15 . 'E' III” 3 Prince William County was named for William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland and third son of King George II of England. The northern Virginia county was formed from Stafford and King George Counties in 1730. The county seat is located in Manassas. The major issue concerning Disney's America was the site of the proposed project in Prince William County near the communities of Manassas and Haymarket. Disney wanted to be near Washington, DC. to attract day-trippers (people who would visit the park for six to eight hours). The 3,000-acre site for the proposed project was located a few miles from Bull Run--a slim, sluggish river in northern Virginia near Haymarket. Haymarket was chartered in 1799 at the junction of a former Indian hunting path and a colonial trade route. This pastoral community of fewer than 500 residents is located 35 miles from Washington, DC. (Sterling, 1994). Manassas National Battlefield Park, a 300-acre tract of land north of Manassas and bordered by Bull Run, was the scene of two important Confederate victories. The two battles of Manassas, in 1861 and 1862, were fought in a rural area close enough to Washington, DC, to permit the city's elite to ride out and watch the conflicts. The first battle of Manassas, fought on July 21, 1861, was the opening engagement of the Civil War and pitted Union General Irvin McDowell's unseasoned troops against General P. G. T. Beauregard's Confederate troops. The Union attack was halted by Thomas J. Jackson and his Virginians, who were able to withstand the Union troops like a "stone wall," thus the nickname. The second battle of Manassas was fought from August 28-30, 1862. This battle cleared the way for General Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North. Landmarks surviving on the battlefield include the Dogan House, used by Union troops as a sniper's nest; the Stone House, used as a field hospital by Union troops in both battles; and a stone bridge that was partially destroyed after the Union retreat from the first battle. Today, Manassas is a suburban haven for federal bureaucrats. The battlefield is bordered by housing developments, strip malls, and nearby Dulles Airport. The park is divided into quarters by Virginia Route 234 and US. Route 29 (F ordney, 1994). Prince William County is also home to Thoroughfare, a tiny historically black community founded by former slaves. The area has witnessed development in rural northern Virginia. Residents’ primary concern was the possibility of being wedged between Disney's America and a proposed racetrack. There was also fear that crime, traffic, pollution, rising property taxes, and condemnation of the land would eradicate the community of Thoroughfare. H' . E . The first preservation efforts in the United States focused on saving buildings linked to historic events or persons. The first recorded historic preservation action was 6 the 1816 purchase of Independence Hall from the State of Pennsylvania (Tyler, 1994). In 1872, the federal government established Yellowstone National Park and began a program of acquiring Civil War battlefield sites to protect them from development (Tyler, 1994) The federal government did not become involved in preservation on a continuing basis until 1906, when President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Antiquities Act into law. The measure authorized American president’s authority to set aside monuments as public domain. In 1916, the National Park Service Act created a federal bureau in the Interior Department to administer national parks and monuments (Tyler, 1994). The historic preservation movement was dormant during World War II. In 1949, the National Trust for Historic Preservation was founded. The Trust was authorized to acquire and preserve historic sites and structures for the public and to encourage public participation in preserving the nation's heritage (Tyler, 1994). Historic preservation was once considered a grassroots movement of the idle rich who were in the business of saving communities and values. Recently, historic preservation has become a more populist movement, and historic preservationists claim that their movement has a broad membership and is not elitist. The National Trust's 1994 list of America's most endangered historic places included Virginia's Piedmont (see Figure 1). O YHISTORIC TWNS '\Civi1 Mar mbattlefields Baii' Bluff? Mouantain Purcellville‘ - . . » Upperville LCCSUUI'g Disney s'tEJ. 3‘? 791mm VIRGINIA Middieburg ' Thoroughfare Gapm Little Washin on Rappahannock Station Waitrenton Spenyville m Brandy Station GUIDED“ Wilderness Mine Runm Chancellorsviiie ‘ 'E‘Frederic burg Spotsylvaniao ‘ \ SpOtsyivania Courthouse 0 10 20 Miles “z: Figure l - Historic sites within an hour's drive of Disney's America. Source US. News and World Report. Business leaders in the Northern Virginia Piedmont area were experiencing a decline in prospects of obtaining a historic-overlay district for the region that would provide control on development along the approaches to the Civil War battlefield sites. 8 The Walt Disney Company denied the claim that the Disney's America project would harm the Northern Virginia Piedmont's landscape. EnximnmentalficstsandBeneflts The cost of a particular development project includes materials, labor, interest on borrowed capital, and other quantifiable items. Benefits include the stream of revenues generated from the project. Such analysis does not account for the costs to the environment because many environmental effects are public goods and lack measurable market values. There are also difficulties associated with assessing the cost of irreversible damage to the environment. The Environmental Law Institute of Washington recognizes that Virginia's prosperity is linked to tourism. A coalition of eight environmental groups headed by the Environmental Defense Fund argued that the road improvements slated for Disney's America would increase traffic, thereby making it more difficult for the region to comply with federal clean-air laws. At least 77,000 additional vehicle trips a day on I-66 would affect air quality in a region that had seen declining air quality during the 19803. The Clean Air Act of 1990 prohibits a region from building new roads if the increased traffic would push pollution levels above established limits. The coalition of environmental groups also argued that Disney’s America would result in at least 77,000 additional vehicle trips a day on I-66 which would affect air quality in a region that had seen declining air quality during the 19808 (Sterling, 1994). There was also the possibility the company would have to construct its own 9 power plant, which would require 12 megawatts per day to supply power. This natural gas generator would present an additional threat to air quality. The 12-megawatt plant could release 180 tons of nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide into the air annually (Sterling, 1994). The Disney's America project proposal included a plan to construct a 28-acre artificial wetland on the park site. The wetland mitigation bank would give the owners wetland credits, allowing them to build on natural wetlands elsewhere. Disney's wetland consultant stated that the artificial wetland would be an improvement on the site's natural wetlands, which had been degraded by years of grazing and farming. Land-use planning is a combination of research, design, and politics. Conflicts between private profit versus public stewardship, local interests versus regional interests, and economic benefits versus environmental degradation are factors that development projects encounter. A land-use plan proposes the location and types of activities in a community, the framework that leads to decisions concerning infrastructure and services, and serves to protect for key environmental areas and resources (Cantanese, 1988). Other issues conceming the development included the discussions between the new Republican governor and a Democratic legislature, state development policy, regional economic jealousies, pollution concerns, and fair distribution of park employment for minorities. EccncmicDexclcnmem Economic-development practitioners need an understanding of the environment- versus—economy question. The public-policy process involves transforming individual 10 values into governmental solutions. Therefore, the values of the individuals the policy is intended to help need to be understood. Clear air and water and open space can be important features to rural and suburban residents. Then concern develops over destroying the environment for the sake of economic growth or preserving the environment while the economy declines. Environmental groups unintentionally reinforce their elitist reputation by ignoring attitudes of local citizens, thereby perceiving them as hostile to the environmental cause. McBeth also argued that, because outside-interest groups dominate the policy process, an environmental concern is often expressed by urban-based environmentalists whose membership tends to represent the economic elite of the community. Business interests outside the community often make economic decisions, and they are able to have their policy concerns articulated by consultants and lobbyists. Environmental interests can be represented in the policy process by individuals from outside the community. Environmentalists make decisions that ignore the economic consequences to the community, whereas large corporations are believed to ignore quality-of-life factors such as clean air and clean water (Altman, 1994). Locally based economic development is a process by which local government and/or community-based groups manage their existing resources and enter into new partnership arrangements. The process of local economic development involves the formation of new institutions, the development of alternative industries, the improvement in the capacity of existing employers to produce better products, the identification of new markets, the transfer of knowledge, and the nurturing of new firms (Blakely, 1989). 1 l The goal of economic development is to increase the number and variety of job opportunities available to local people. Blakely also states that the information requirements of participants in the local economic-development-planning process include information on the socioeconomic base and the community's development capacity. The socioeconomic base consists of area demographics, labor-market conditions, economic characteristics, physical/location conditions, and community services. Area demographics include the hierarchy of age groupings, with emphasis on employment, age, income, and occupational distribution of the population over the last ten years. Labor market conditions include information on employment distribution by gender in each industrial category. Economic characteristics include the exploration of the area's economic base, changes, and its responses to economic conditions. Physical/location conditions involve an examination of the physical features of the area that relate to the economic base, that includes the assessment of physical resources, industrial land availability, transport and communication links, housing stock, and assets related to tourism venues. Community services include the range of social, educational, recreational, and cultural services available to a community. W This researcher’s central purpose in examing the stakeholder dynamics involved in the politics surrounding development projects was to address the following questions: 1. What collaborations are formed by stakeholder groups? 2. How do environmental, cultural, and economic development issues affect the viability of a project and why? 12 3. How do elites influence stakeholder beliefs and agendas related to the project? 4. How are the perceptions of issues influenced by the media? This researcher used the Virginia project as a study site to test the relationships between stakeholder groups and agenda planning as outlined in the research questions. Site visits and content analysis of planning reports and newspaper articles reported in the Washington Post and the New York Times during the time frame of November 1993 through November 1994 were used to find evidence to support answers to the research questions. The findings were related to the literature on the politics of development and stakeholder activities. The major issues addressed in the study through content analysis of include environmental protection, historic preservation, and economic development. Findings from the study may be useful to scholars, community planning practitioners, advocacy groups, and residents to gain new understandings of issues related to the politics of development and the challenge of developing sustainable communities. Definiticncflenns The following terms are defined for the context in which they are used in this dissertation. Collaboration: A temporary social arrangement in which two or more social actors work together toward a singular end, requiring the sharing of materials, ideas, and/or social relations to achieve the end (Roberts, 1991). Decisioual Mapping: A technique that uses graphics based on case studies of people, organizations, and pressure groups involved in a decision making process who attempt to influence outcomes in a variety of areas. 13 Elites: Individuals identified in the study who occupy defined positions of authority in government or special-interest groups who also are listed in W23- Network Analysis: An analysis of interconnections among people and their operations conceming policy. There are three types of networks: positional, reputational, and decisional. Positional networks use public information to establish leadership interlocks and begin with identifying the names ofindividuals from a range of organizations. Reputational networks are based on the personal opinions of people associated with a person. Stakeholder: Any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of an organization’s objectives. Urban Sprawl: Low-density development on the edges of cities or towns that may be viewed as being poorly planned, automobile oriented, land consumptive, and designed without regard to the surroundings as judged by local decision makers and other stakeholders. This chapter has introduced the study topic and identified the questions that will guide the research. The following chapter will present the literature relevant to an analysis of stakeholders and the politics of development. There will also be a discussion of the history of theme parks and amusement centers and the public reactions that accompany this particular type of development. Because the Virginia project study site involved a proposed theme park by the Walt Disney Company, there is some discussion of the company’s projects. Chapter 2 LITERATURE REVIEW Intrednszticn Stakeholder response to perceived outsider economic development varies from one case to another. For example, response to a theme park development with accompanying restaurants and retail establishments may vary from the stakeholder response to a proposed elementary school near a recently finished housing development. The common theme in the scenario is that stakeholders have a right to be involved and that is a right they will not give up easily (Renn, 1993). This chapter contains a review of literature pertinent to the study of the politics of development and stakeholder agendas. The chapter begins with a discussion of economic development and the politics involved in development projects, a discussion of stakeholders and decision making, stakeholder agendas, and concludes with a discussion of theme parks and Walt Disney Company development projects. Stakeholders involved in the Disney's America project both supported and opposed the project. Concerns about the role of stakeholders, the origin of stakeholders, and stakeholders' influence were evident. The popular example of community opposition to locally unwanted land uses (LULUs) was evident in the Disney's America case. Community opposition and Not in My Backyard (NIMBY) sentiments often 14 15 accompany proposals to build incinerators, landfills, group homes, prisons, and, in this case, a theme park. In her study of municipal shelter siting policies in New York City, Gaber (1996) identified a cycle of responses to proposals for siting controversial facilities. The community would experience three stages: (a) youth-Community opposition closest to proposed development, NIMBY sentiments blunt, irrational; (b) maturity--debate moves into public forum, opposition rhetoric more tempered, less irrational; (c) old age-conflict resolution, arbitration, community and city make concessions. During the development of events surrounding the Disney's America project, the three stages were exemplified by grassroots organizations that mobilized against the project. The mobilization efforts included activities by neighborhood citizen groups in Manassas. The groups did not welcome the idea of a theme park and spin-off development in their neighborhood and the threat of lawsuits and increased use of the media by larger organizations like the Piedmont Environmental Council, to the final decision by the Walt Disney Company to abandon the project. Economic Developme_nt Locally based economic development projects can cause activity among stakeholders who feel they are directly affected by the development. It is a process by which local government and/or community-based groups manage their existing resources and enter into new partnership arrangements. The process of local economic development involves the formation of new institutions, the development of alternative 16 industries, the improvement in the capacity of existing employers to produce better products, the identification of new markets, the transfer of knowledge, and the nurturing of new firms (Blakely, 1989). The goal of economic development is to increase the number and variety of job opportunities available to local people. With community participation and using existing resources community-based institutions combine resources to design and develop the local economy (Blakely, 1989). Blakely identifies five theories that deal with the concepts of local economic development. The neoclassical theory offers two major concepts for regional and local development theories: equilibrium and mobility. The concepts assert that all economic systems will reach a natural equilibrium if capital can flow without restriction. The economic base theory emphasizes the importance of aid to businesses that have a national or international market above and beyond aid to local service firms. This includes measures that reduce barriers to export-based firms such as tax relief, transport facilities, and telecommunication. Location theory asserts that firms tend to minimize their costs by selecting locations that maximize their opportunities to reach the marketplace. The quality or suitability of a location is affected by labor cost, the cost of energy, availability of suppliers, communications, education, and training facilities. Modem technology and telecommunications alter the need for specific locations for the production and distribution of goods. Central place theory asserts that there is a hierarchy of places. Each urban center is supported by a series of smaller places. The attraction model asserts that a community can alter its market position with industrialists 17 by offering incentives and subsidies. The assumption is that any public or private subsidies provided will be recouped through increased economic wealth and taxes generated by new activity (Blakely, 1989). Of the theories presented by Blakely, the location theory relates best to the events that accompanied the Virginia project; Disney’s America. The Walt Disney Company was seeking an accessible site for their theme park that would attract “day trippers” from the Washington, DC. area. An effort to minimize their cost while maximizing the potential market that results from a large number of visitors to the area. In 1972, Vardaman wrote that the first significant decision in the environmental field was Scenic Hudson Preservation Conference v. Federal Power Commission. The Scenic Hudson Preservation Conference, consisting of conservation organizations and three towns, petitioned the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to set aside an order of the Federal Power Commission permitting Consolidated Edison to construct a massive hydroelectric storage project at Storm King Mountain on the Hudson River. The order was challenged on the ground that the Commission had failed to consider a number of alternatives that would have lessened the impact of the project on scenic and historic sites surrounding Storm King Mountain. The court held that all of the petitioners had standing under the provision of the Federal Power Act, which permitted them to seek review in court. This rejected the Commission's argument that only parties with economic interests had standing to seek review. The Scenic Hudson case based the plaintiffs standing on the ground that they 18 were suing as representatives of the general public and that their action was a public one in which the plaintiff was a person affected no differently from the next person. It is easy to identify harm to local communities and citizens of an area where historic sites or buildings are threatened, although there is still difficulty in identifying direct injury to any group or individual because of the destruction. There’s no doubt that the public interest is injured by inadequate consideration of the preservation of historic sites and areas. Congress recognizes that the historical and cultural foundations should be preserved as a part of community life for the sake of future generations' appreciation. The 1966 Amendment to the Historic Sites Act decided that individuals and agencies should continue to play a role in preservation of historic areas. In cases involving a public area, the court focused on where there would be harm to the public and whether the plaintiffs would be responsible spokespersons for public interests involved. In the case of standing, there is a greater likelihood that standing will be found if a group can identify a particular . harm to members even though the site may be shared by others. If an individual or group shows "injury in fact" to an aesthetic, conservation, or recreational interest, it will have standing under Scenic Hudson and Church of Christ to bring a private action (Brenneman, 1971). Zoning control is most acceptable for large, multiple-tract areas and has not been useful where there is a need for controls tailored to small areas. Conservation easements mean that all or some development rights associated with a parcel of land are stripped from the fee-—very flexible and useful in preservation work. Control over land may also 19 result from the existence of a power to terminate an interest in land upon breach of a condition (Brenneman, 1971). Sustainable Community Development Projects When a development project is proposed for an area, one of the considerations is whether or not the development fits into the category of sustainable community development. Changes in the way development is conceptualized have expanded to include time, space, marginalized socio-economic groups, and changing economies (Schafer, 1994). The old paradigm of community development focused on technological remedies, and also the idea that everyone will benefit from the development, and there was minimal connection among members of the community affected by the development (Shaffer, 1994). The new paradigm supports changes in how business is conducted. Social interactions among community stakeholders are encouraged and efforts are made to connect with the people the development is supposed to benefit. An important aSpect of involving community stakeholders in the decision making process that surrounds the politics of development projects is involving stakeholders from the onset of the project. Stakeholders The word "stakeholders" is used to describe individuals who are in a position to profit or lose where business decisions and investments are involved. According to the stakeholder concept, the modern organization, whether public or private, is affected by a set of forces larger than the traditional three parties of stockholders, customers, and the 20 organization itself (Mitroff, 1983). The phrase “stakeholders' agenda" can be defined as the desired project outcome of the affected stakeholder groups and the tactics, or tools, employed by those groups to carry out their agendas. The term stakeholder originated in the early 1960s as a deliberate play on the word stockholder. The idea behind the origin of the word is that parties other than stockholders have a “stake” in the decisions of the modern, publicly held corporation. Therefore, no group or individual who can affect or is affected by a decision can be left out of the decision making process because that group may prevent a desired outcome. The right of stakeholders can be challenged in the area of their right to expect their own economic interests will receive sole attention from those managing the outcome of a project (Mitroff, 1983). Ian Mitroff’s description of stakeholders in relation to organizations can also be applied to stakeholders’ actions in relation to development projects. In relation to their activities within an organization, Mitroff introduced a concept of stakeholders that involves a wide range of forces influencing any social system, whether it be a corporation or an individual. Stakeholders include the interest groups, parties, actors, claimants, and external and internal interests that have a stake in a project’s outcome. Mitroff describes two categories of stakeholders; external and internal. External stakeholders are employees, stockholders, and consumers connected to an organization, and internal stakeholders are the ego states that exist in a person’s mind (Mitroff, 1983). 21 Mitroff described seven approaches to identifying stakeholders within an organization that can also be used to describe stakeholders in a variety of situations. This theory can also be applied to deve10pment projects: 1. Imperative approach identifies stakeholders who express through their actions how an organization’s actions affect them. To use this method, one must make a list of slogans and catchwords used in the context of the policy issue. Any acts of defiance or actions that express dissatisfaction should be noted. This method misses silent stakeholders. 2. Positional approach identifies stakeholders who occupy formal positions in a policy-making structure internal or external to the organization. This method misses stakeholders who are not formal parts of the organization. 3. Reputational approach entails asking various knowledgeable or important persons to nominate those believed to have a stake in the system. This method ignores unorganized or disenfranchised members. 4. Social-participation approach identifies organizations as stakeholders to the extent that they participate in activities related to a policy issue. This method ignores the silent majority. 5 . Opinion leadership identifies those who tend to shape the opinions of others. This method is less precise than the others and requires more judgment on the analyst’s part. 6. Demographic approach considers age, gender, race, and income and 22 assumes homogeneity of a group. 7. Focal organization identifies the individuals and organizations having important relationships with the focal organization. This method is not comprehensive. A need to analyze stakeholders’ agendas and roles in relation to the politics of development projects can inspire a need to investigate whether group members representing competing interests can work together to develop policy and/or innovative approaches to having their needs met when a development project is proposed. Such collaboration is a process through which parties that see different aspects of a problem can explore differences and search for solutions. Collaboration is described as a temporary organizational form in which two or more actors work toward a singular common end that requires sharing of materials and ideas (Westley, 1991). Numerous questions have arisen concerning the origin and levels of stakeholders, as well as stakeholder influence. The role and level of participation of stakeholders may differ from one policy arena to another. Whether it involves building a new incinerator, a recreation center, or an elementary school, but the common understanding among stakeholders is that they have a right to be involved and will not readily relinquish this right (Renn, 1993). Organizations have a collection of organized internal and external stakeholders. Each stakeholder has resources, purposes, and a will of his or her own. Resources are defined as material resources, symbolic resources, physical resources, positional resources, information resources, and skills (Altman, 1994). Relationships to other stakeholders exist by virtue of power, authority, responsibility, and accountability. 23 There is a network of interdependent relationships among all stakeholders; this network can be supportive or resistive. The state of an organization will influence the interaction of the organization’s stakeholders within its culture. The stakeholder-based policy process described by Altman includes the influence stakeholders have on policy development and education of stakeholders concerning their potential effects on a project’s outcome. (See Figure 2). Problem Definition Stakeholder Education of Policy and Agenda Setting Involvement Makers About Agenda Figure 2: Stakeholder policy process (Altman & Petkus, 1994). Stikeholder Response to Outside Economic Development It is possible for some stakeholders to perceive developments as unwanted growth. Growth is often seen as a panacea to community problems, whether fiscal, economic, or social. Questions arise about the ability or desirability of the “growth game” to solve community problems (Vogel, 1989). Whether the proposed development is a stadium, homeless shelter, shopping center, or amusement park, often there is no consensus on what serves the best interest of the community. Various stakeholders involved are capable of defining the community interest as they see fit (Vogel, 1989). The potential for new jobs, increased tourism, or improved services may conflict with the idea that many problems are associated with growth, including traffic congestion, air and water pollution, increased crime, social unrest, higher cost of living, 24 and a decline in the quality of life (Vogel, 1989). The way a new development is defined affects policy surrounding its acceptance and completion. In the growth versus antigrowth thesis developed by Logan and Moloch in their book Urban Fortune: The Political Economy of flag, the argument was that growth is not usually in the community interest. The real challenge for localities is finding a way to attract, direct, or repel growth to serve the community interest. They proposed a strategy to alter the ability of business to force cities to compete for capital created from developments. The strategy depended on the antigrowth coalition winning its struggle against the growth machine in individual communities. In a related study, Vogel and Swanson conducted a study in which they examined the perceptions of local stakeholders/actors about growth, appraised the prospects of the antigrowth coalition in the struggle to defeat the growth machine, and assessed the potential to end the battle over growth through growth management. In the area of growth versus antigrth coalitions the researchers found if the antigrowth coalition temporarily wins control they are able to raise questions concerning the desirability of growth. ’ Members of the growth coalition include civic and trade associations and business leaders who have contact with each other through community service organizations. Members of the growth machine have earned credit for developing a well-planned community with model neighborhoods and economic stability. Members of the growth machine characterize members of the growth machine as elitists who are unconcerned 25 about the need for more jobs, opportunities for minorities, or the placement of new infrastructure. They are considered negative when addressing environmental problems, but the growth machine reluctantly credits the antigrowth coalition with Contributing to better planning and forcing the community to recognize the importance of natural resources (Vogel, 1989). Vogel and Swanson describe the anti-growth coalition as consisting of neighborhood organizations, environmentalists, and watchdogs of elected officials. They question whether continued growth is beneficial and believe that additional population growth will only reduce the quality of life - the natural environment, jobs, and leisure- time activities. Antigrowth coalition members believe their efforts have improved the quality of development, stimulated the city to purchase land for open space, forced consideration of energy conservation, and focused attention on the value of the environment. Elites as Stakeholders It can also be useful to examine the role of elites as stakeholders and their influence on the politics surrounding developments. Interlocking networks (will define) can be used to trace the scope of influence elites may have in a community or activities associated with a particular development project. Elites are individuals who have access to dominant group values and control the access of non-elites to those values. The concept of the elite is classificatory and descriptive, designating the holders of high positions in a given society. There exists the 26 political elite, as well as wealth, respect, and knowledge elites (Laswell, 1971). The term “elite” came into use as a means of designating choice merchandise; usage was then extended to include other objects worthy of choice. Laswell (1971) defined power as sharing in decisions, and a decision is what officials determine. The elite are accountable to the community. The power holders include the leadership and the social formations from which leaders typically come, and to whom accountability is maintained. The elitist theorists suggest stakeholders/actors in institutional positions of power make most of the policy decisions and are highly influential. However, the elitist model of a select few exercising power does not necessarily identify individuals who are influential in specific policy areas. Heclo and Kingdon describe a fluid flow of stakeholders/actors in and out of policy issues and associated agenda building. Kingdon’s (1984) policy elite tends to specialize, focusing their energies on a limited set of related issues. They are able to shape policy by promoting or opposing policies and by developing and interpreting data and administering programs. Yet, the power elite are more influential and deal with broader issues. Elite is a term used by both democratic and non-democratic countries. Fascist, Nazi, and other non-democratic movements have used the word as a weapon. They define the elite as persons with superior fitness to rule (Laswell, 1971). In democratic countries the political elite are recruited from a broad base while the elites in non- democratic societies are often from a few families. Laswell defines power as sharing in decisions. Studies of the elite concept 27 requires gathering information about the values employed by members of the elite group as the basis of authority and control. A study also requires an examination of the tactics relied on in advancing themselves and the rise and decline of the pattern of authority and control. Power structure research conducted by Hunter and Mills was concerned with societal power and the prospects for democracy in the United States. These researchers saw societal power as rooted in large-scale organizations. In their research, they concentrated on ways in which organization’s leaders come together to form a power structure or power elite in local communities and at the national level. Mills saw “rule” as a political concept and “class” as an economic concept. He used the term “power elite” as an appropriate way of recognizing that political power extends beyond government. Mills also argued that there exists a political elite in governing institutions and at the top of other institutions of power. Mills asserts that strategic institutions of power are dominated by a group of tightly integrated individuals recruited from a background of wealth and property. For example, business leaders appointed to political advisory positions or top military leadership are drawn from the same leading families (Scott, 1990). Dahl’s hypothesis of the ruling elite states that within a specific political system there exists a group of people who exercise power or influence over actors in the system, and there is a difference in preferences among the stakeholders/actors. The power structure is often a system of organized domination, and the power elite often will use 28 intimidation and coercion on their critics and opponents. Stakeholders and Deci_sion Ming Stakeholder groups desire to be represented in any decision making process that affects their lives for a variety of reasons that can be economic, political, social, cultural, or religious. Decision making can exist in more than one form and decision makers can come from a variety of areas. Decision making is defined in major components: (a) short-term or operations decision making and (b) long-term planning or policy making. The process of decision making can be described as a series of stages involving such tasks as problem definition, data collection and analysis, and policy formulation and evaluation (Renn, 1993). The actual style of decision making may vary from individual to individual and from organization to organization. In legislative bodies, for example, decision making necessarily represents a broad variety of interests and constituencies. Thus, compromise and tradeoff between and among conflicting viewpoints may be an essential part of the decision-making process. Decision makers come from different environments and have varying degrees of responsibility and jurisdiction. Time, money, and personnel are scarce resources whose allocation affects the implementation of programs and policies. The political structure, power structure, and controlling interests of different groups or lobbies may affect the decision maker’s ability to succeed. History of Outdoor Amusements and Theme Pm 29 Outdoor amusements such as carnivals and theme parks represent a type of development that can cause a variety of stakeholder reactions in terms of potential popularity, and they have existed for centuries. For example, there were the Olympic games held in ancient Greece and chariot races in ancient Rome, followed by medieval carnivals; then, the pleasure gardens of seventeenth and eighteenth century Europe evolved. The pleasure gardens consisted of tree-lined paths, refreshment stands, fountains, sports activities, musical concerts, social dancing, balloon rides, parachute jumps, and primitive rides. The pleasure gardens were influenced by the expositions and world fairs held in London, Paris, and Vienna and eventually began offering a variety of mechanical rides (Weinstein, 1992). In early nineteenth-century America, public recreation and entertainment combined with the effects of urbanization and industrialization, created a variety of outdoor amusements. The public park system, such as Central Park in New York City, counteracted the negative effects of overcrowding by providing open spaces for leisurely activities. Picnic groves entertained with swings, merry-go-rounds, target shooting, foot races, donkey rides, music, dancing, and bowling matches. During the 18205 and 18305, there was a transportation revolution, that encouraged the creation of urban seaside resorts. Steamboats and railroad service encouraged the development of urban seaside resorts along the coast of New England, New York, and New Jersey. Some resorts became fashionable vacation destinations that offered summer cottages, large hotels, and inexpensive inns. Visitors enjoyed ocean 30 bathing, hunting, fishing, sailing, concerts, dress balls, and plays (Weinstein, 1992). Later, during the nineteenth century, traveling carnivals and circuses became popular, and the public grew accustomed to seeing and paying for outdoor amusements such as trained animal acts, human freak shows, acrobatic performances, and equestrian exhibitions (Weinstein, 1992). During the last decade of the nineteenth century, two developments were important to the future development of the modern amusement park: trolley lines and the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893. The traction companies that built streetcar lines were charged a monthly flat fee to cover the cost of the electricity that operated the trolleys. To encourage customers to ride the trolleys on weekends, some companies built amusement attractions and mechanical rides at the end of the trolley line, creating the trolley park. World’s Fair The most direct ancestor to Disneyland is the World’s Fair. The World’s Fair evolved from the national manufacturing exhibitions associated with the Industrial Revolution. This type of exhibition reached its peak in 1851 with the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations held in London under the glass roof of Joseph Paxton’s Crystal Palace (Sorkin, 1992). The Crystal Palace exhibit depicted paradise, with an interior filled with greenery and the work of many nations. Theme parks capitalize on such relationships between geography and transportation. The ability to simulate travel was the major draw of World’s Fair exhibits, and modern theme parks continue to capitalize on the relationship 31 between geography and transportation (Sorkin, 1992). Future World's Fairs included pavilions representing transportation, manufacturing, and science. Because the exhibits were built on the scale of small cities, the fairs became models for urban vision. Like other urbanized areas, the outskirts of the World's Fair grounds became home to carnivals and other forms of popular entertainment including bars and strip shows. The 1892 World's Fair in Chicago marked the City Beautiful movement and was a model for the new American city. The City Beautiful model included baroque symmetries, beaux-arts architecture, parks, greenery, and visible order--a presentation of good public behavior (Sorkin, 1992). Inspired by the City Beautiful, expanding technology contributed to other visions of regulation. The modernist urbanism vision produced a version of the city compatible with Disney's beginnings. For example, Ebenezer Howard's garden cities represent the physical paradigm for Disney space--the park-within-the-theme-park phenomenon. One specific is that garden cities were to be small cities constructed on the perimeter of existing metropolises to function as an escape from the overcrowded older city. The strategy for movement within the park included strict regulation of traffic, with a separation of pedestrians and vehicles and a scale of distances convenient for walkers. This usually comprised a single center with a radial plan united by loops of circulation (Sorkin, 1992). World's Fairs in the l930s--the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago and the 1939 World's Fair in New York City-wcombined technology and the garden city 32 approach. Like a walk through Disneyland, the Chicago Fair was laid out along a roadway that reminded the visitor of a garden city. Along the route, there were a variety of pavilions celebrating science and technology. Above the roadway, there was a sky ride. Coney Island Coney Island, a five-mile stretch of beach on the Atlantic Ocean, was part of the land sold to the British in 1643 by the Dutch West India Company. Development of Coney Island as a seaside resort began in 1824 with construction of a causeway across the creek and the island's first hotel, Coney Island House. The island offered seclusion to visitors, and a small steamboat service linked it to lower Manhattan. In 1895, Coney Island became the first modern amusement park; the first theme park was built in 1903, and three major parks, Sea Lion Park, Steeplechase, and Shadowland, operated side by side from 1904 until 1910 (Weinstein, 1992). The closing decades of the nineteenth century resulted in the building of several hotels and a mass amusement section on the island. The island eventually became a conglomeration of mechanical rides and buildings: a 300-foot-high observation tower; a 600-foot railroad; a 125-foot-high ferris wheel; a 122-foot-high elephant-shaped hotel; and two double-deck steel piers with shOps, restaurants, and a gigantic water slide (Weinstein, 1992). Coney Island was the impetus for the creation of two adjacent amusement parks. In 1895, Sea Lion Park was built; it included aquatic exhibitions, water rides, trained 33 animal acts, and a ballroom. In 1897, Steeplechase opened; it included mechanical rides, fun houses, gaming devices, and sideshow practices, amusement ideas, and innovations. During the early twentieth century, the American public had an increase in leisure time and disposable income. Amusement parks reached their peak in the 1920s. Use of the automobile resulted in the creation of parks that did not rely on mass transit lines, such as trolleys and railroads, for customers. In the 19205 competition from movies for the public's entertainment dollar forced park designers to create new ways to attract and thrill visitors. Older trolley parks attracted locals, and the clientele discouraged family visits. As time passed, Coney Island attracted a larger working-class clientele, and former visitors were attracted to more modern parks in the New York area (Weinstein, 1992). Walt Disney visited Coney Island and disliked the park, considering it dirty, disorganized, poorly run, garish, and honky-tonk. The Depression resulted in a decline in amusement park attendance because former customers experienced a reduction in disposable income. During the Depression, Coney Island's reputation suffered because of the new emphasis on entertainment such as games of chance. Another point in history that affected the amusement park business was the invention of the television, which allowed families to be entertained at home. Theme Parks Theme parks are leisure developments designed around one or more fantasy themes or popular attractions such as a haunted house or roller coaster. Theme parks in 34 the United States generate approximately $4 billion in annual revenues (Grover, 1993). The theme park is both the brainchild and product of Walt Disney because it was Disney who thought the carnivals and amusement parks of his day were inadequate for his children. Therefore, Disneyland was created as an alternative. Disneyland Disneyland in Anaheim, California, originated from the Walt Disney Company's animated motion pictures. Disneyland provided the visitor with security, cleanliness, efficiency, and fun. Drawing on the frivolous characters of the cartoons while escalating the escapism of the amusement park, Disneyland embraced fantasy and suspended visual and historical scrutiny (Trieb, 1992). Disney World and Disneyland are organized on the scale of the garden city. Located on an urban perimeter, they are compared to modern office parks found at the intersection of highway systems. The parks have a center occupied by Snow White's castle; then one will find a series of theme-lands. Pedestrians circulate on the ground, while the park's perimeter and airspace are used for trains, monorails, and aerial gondolas. Because the theme park is described as a travel destination, Disney emphasized the act of traveling and arriving in the layout of the park. The intention is to create the idea that, upon aniving, one is not passing through an intermediate station, but has arrived at a definitive location. For example, a trip to Disneyland is a substitute for a trip to Norway or Japan. Such a phenomenon encourages the visitor to experience the past or future by visiting Disneyland instead of the actual place. 35 Visitors to Disneyland travel in order to travel. Each Disney theme park has a type of thematic transportation. Euro-Disneyland has the French bullet train, Disney World exists in relationship to the airport, and Disneyland is off an exit of the Los Angeles freeway. In each case, the park is an area of intense travel; hence, the urbanism of Disneyland. Disneyland has Fantasyland, Frontierland, and Tomorrowland as historic themes. The townscape is designed for the visitor seeing it through the windows of a passing car. One is placed in a position of spectator of one's own spectacle (Sorkin, 1992). Arriving from the airport at Disney World, the visitor passes through a toll barrier, parks the car, and converts his or her money to Disney Dollars. Park visitors are welcomed by Mickey Mouse, described as a clean mouse because he is hairless, sexless, and harmless--affective and cute. Disney space is more than an amusement park. ’ Disneyland, Disney World, and other Disney places also represent abundance and leisure- -a postindustrial ut0pia. Unfortunately, the boundaries of the Disneyland development lacked order. The success of the park encouraged developers to purchase surrounding countryside for hotels and low commerce. This resulted in a loss to hotels operated by Disney, and the disorder sullied the clean image. Disney World was designed to avoid that process. The plan was to include a theme park and community development to house workers. The government of Florida provided Disney sovereignty that included rights of policing, taxation, administration, and 36 freedom from environmental controls over the domain. Walt Disney died before Disney World materialized, so the park plans were left to his successors. The park is organized with Main Street flanked by pavilions of major United States corporations. The Disney strategy is to inscribe utopia on the terrain of the familiar and vice versa (Sorkin, 1992). The images intensify and reduce complexity for quick access and digestibility. Disneyland cinema is concretized into a city. An example is the Disney- MGM studio at Disney World. The attraction is movies--the studio and particular scenes from selected movies. Located in Hollywood, the Disney-MGM theme park's Main Street axial introduction is a recreation of Hollywood Boulevard. One passes through a gateway of the Pan-Pacific auditorium, past a replica of the Crossroads of the World tower, a reincarnated Brown Derby, and a scaled-down version of Los Angeles architecture. A re-created Grauman's Chinese Theater signals the Great Movie Ride, a trip through scenes of well-known Disney and MGM movies recreated by Animatronic robots. In an experience described as Disneyfication, the visitor is suspended in a serially realized apparatus of simulation (Sorkin, 1992). According to Sorkin, Disneyfication substitutes recreation for work. The work at the theme park is entertainment. Employees are considered by management to be cast members. Transforming workers into actors transforms their work into play, inventing an empire of leisure that differentiates Disneyland and Disney World from everyday life. It is a hygienic, industrial metropolis, staffed with workers enjoying their contributions to the collective (Sorkin, 1992). 37 Disney parks are built on giant platforms. Underneath the attractions, tunnels provide service and staff circulation. Even though the subterranean space may bring images of trapped workers, this space is considered "clean," partly because the image of a human in a mouse costume is not a dehumanizing image like that of an inmate in chains (Sorkin, 1992). The underground tunnels are also representations of order. The venue is used to efficiently clean the streets and transport workers who monitor and service the tourists leisurely strolling above. Disney invokes an urbanism without producing a city. Instead, it produces a sterile hyper-city, a city with citizens but no residents. Everyone simply passes through-~a symbol of constant motion where visitors are reduced to the status of cartoon characters. See Appendix A for additional information on Disney’s theme parks. Walt Disney supported three notions, which influenced the Disney style. The first was Disney's perception that politics, for most Americans, is a life style and not a decision-making process. Second, the Disney image reinforces the ambiguity most Americans feel about sex and death; it makes the former cute and the latter pathetic but neither painful nor fulfilling. Third, Disney represents the hidden inventor and/or God complex in everyone. Disneyland allows visitors to lose their inhibitions yet retain their sanity, for it is a seemingly fantastic world where all is order underneath (Bennett, 1971). In 1995, there were 600 theme parks in the United States, including King's Dominion, Busch Gardens, Colonial Williamsburg, Six Flags, Cedar Point, Paramount, and Universal Studios (Trieb, 1992). Disney theme parks are also located in Japan and 38 France. Theme parks are described as exclusive places for "some" people. Cultural critics dislike the repressive nature of theme parks and Disney's social enterprise. Repressors include the limited ways one can act within the park, pressure to conform, the high cost of admission, and the glorification of America with its mythical frontier and small-town past (Trieb, 1992). Critics view the hyper-realism of theme parks as evidence of a deteriorating democracy and people's inability to interact with the world. Disneyland, they say, represents a reduction of actual experience to an image or a replica. The image subsumed primary interaction as the television superseded the book, as simulated materials replaced real materials, and as mass media replaced folk or regional expression (Trieb, 1992). The question has been raised as to the relationship between escapist fun and authentic experience. In this regard, Gary Coates (1992), professor of architecture at Kansas State University, asserted that theme parks are contributing to environmental decline because visitors to these parks are led to believe that an environment can be sustained and controlled by technicians and engineers. Coates believed that theme parks are preprogrammed fantasies that exclude nature's randomness and unpredictability. Entertainment is considered a growth industry for the 19905. In 1993, entertainment and recreation industries added 200,000 workers. Since 1991, consumers have boosted their outlays on entertainment and recreation by 13%, more than twice the growth rate of overall consumer spending (see US. Department of Commerce Table l). 39 Table 1: Consumer spending on recreation and entertainment, 1993 Where Entertainment Dollars Go Amount (in billions) Toys and sporting equipment $ 65 VCRs, TVs, recorded music, videotapes, electronics $ 58 Books, magazines, and newspapers $ 47 Gambling $ 28 Cable TV $ 19 Amusement parks 5 14 Movie admissions and video rentals 3 13 Home computers $ 8 Personal boats and aircraft 8 7 Live entertainment 5 6 Spectator sports $ 6 Other $ 70 TOTAL $341 When Disneyland was built in the 19505, a number of support services for the park developed, circumscribing expansion and limiting the earnings from escalating land values instigated by the park. Motels, hotels, restaurants, fast- food venues, and other 40 services grew. When Walt Disney World in Florida was constructed, the Walt Disney Company acquired a tract of land from several counties and developed its own administrative district. The land holdings were increased, and Disney was able to construct primary and secondary theme parks, theme hotels, and EPCOT. Expansive economic-development projects require the deliberate modification of the environment; therefore, any project poses the threat of environmental degradation. Was this the case with Virginia’s Disney's America? Disney's approach was conservative and nostalgic, and morality was an aspect of style and aesthetics. The only way to enter Disneyland is through Mainstreet USA, an 18905-style small-town street. Mainstreet is depicted as a compromise between rural and suburban areas, where private property and individual responsibility are paramount. There is just enough security, without detracting from freedom of expression. Disney demanded realistic dimensions and movement in his cartoons. Authenticity meant the imitation of the physical world--the illusion of natural movement. The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, a publicly owned corporation, was founded in 1938. With 65,000 employees, Disney is a complex string of businesses comprising the studios, the Disney Channel, the television production company, and theme parks in the United States, Europe, and Japan, along with associated businesses, real estate, construction, hotels, restaurants, and corporate sponsors. The Disney consumer products division comprises licensed products, mail order, more than 300 retail stores, publishing, a record 41 company, and relatively new ventures such as live theater, the sports franchise, and an upcoming cruise line (Grover, 1993). In 1984, Michael Eisner and his now-deceased partner, Frank Wells, took charge of a company that depended on the cyclical theme-park business for almost 80% of its operating income and only 1% for movies. Eisner revived the Disney Company by increasing the price of admission to the parks, aggressively marketing the image of cartoon characters, opening theme stores, increasing the scope of mail-order catalogs, and transforming film-making operations (Grover, 1993). In 1993, Eisner proposed a multibillion-dollar strategy to revive the theme-park business. The plan included a $3 billion WESTCOT Center in Anaheim, California. Another park in Orlando, Florida, and a second park in Tokyo with a maritime theme, DisneySea, would feature rides tied to nautical heroes, and a third near Paris was modeled after Orlando's MGM-Disney studio tour. Because theme parks also are used to promote films and licensed merchandise, expanding theme parks was considered crucial. At the time, there were questions concerning the expansions because of competition from Time Warner Inc., Paramount Communications, family-style casinos in Las Vegas built by MGM Grand, Mirage Resorts, and Circus Circus Enterprises. The Eisner-revived Disney Company now earns 43% of its income from movies and 35% from theme parks. Disney formerly brought in less than 9% of its revenues from overseas; today the proportion is 23%. The old Disney dabbled in resort business with 2,894 hotel rooms, whereas the new Disney offers 21,586 rooms at 21 resorts (T rieb, fl w‘fi-‘i _ ..-...> 42 1992). Disney’s America The proposed Disney's America project in Prince William County, Virginia, would have been one-tenth the size of Disney World in Orlando, Florida. The park included an l8-hole golf course, and after the year 2000, a water park. The development also would have included up to 2,281 homes, 1,340 hotel rooms, and 1.9 million square feet of retail and commercial office space along with a billion—dollar building boom. The park was expected to attract an estimated 6.3 million people a year. The Disney Company did not plan to desecrate a Civil War battleground, detract from history, add to environmental concerns, or harm endangered species. Rather, they wanted to help educate people through entertainment. Using film, animation, music, interactive media, and live interpretation, Disney intended to bring American history to life. Eisner argued that, because the site for Disney's America was in a state with significant historical attributes, the theme park would stimulate visits to underused sites. Disney's America would have simulated history in close proximity to Washington, D.C.'5 authentic historic sites. Disney's America was intended to be a smaller, regional park for day trips rather than a full-fledged destination resort. The point of destination would be reenactment of American historical events. The park was intended to include "painful, disturbing exhibits on slavery." The New York Times (1993) quoted Eisner as saying, "We will show the Civil War with all its racial conflict. We want to make you a Civil War soldier. We want to make you feel what it was like to be a slave or what it was 43 like to escape through the Underground Railroad." Park opponents were concerned about how Disney planned to integrate Mickey Mouse, Goofy, and the usual assortment of thrill rides with somber historical themes such as slavery and the Vietnam War. Disney's America was to be divided into the following nine areas covering approximately 100 acres: 1. Crossroads USA-~Visitors would enter the park at this Civil War-era village. Antique steam-powered trains would transport people around the various tenitories of Disney's America. There would also be a collection of suites resembling a nineteenth-century inn for visitors. 2. Presidents' Square--Thi5 section of the park would house the Hall of Presidents, among other attractions designed to celebrate the birth of democracy and the formation of the United States. 3. Native America--This territory would present the life and culture of American Indians, including authentic Indian villages and works of art. A Lewis and Clark river-raft expedition would be included in this area. 4. Civil War Fort--This area would house a fort portraying the daily experiences of a Civil War soldier and showing life in the United States during that era. Also in this section, Civil War battles would be reenacted, and ship battles would be recreated. 5. We the People--This park area would celebrate the nation's immigrant heritage, including ethnic foods, music, and multimedia exhibits. 44 6. Enterprise--This factory town would portray the nation's inventions and industry, among other attractions. This section would also include a roller-coaster ride. 7. Victory Field--Visitors to this area would be able to experience some of America's military history. 8. State Fair--This area would include a large ferris wheel, a wooden roller coaster, and a tribute to baseball, among other exhibits. 9. Family FarmuThis area would be a tribute to the nation's farms. Among the exhibits, visitors could attend a barn dance and learn how to milk a cow. Issues The opposition to Disney's America grew from a state to a national debate involving historic preservationists, citizen activists, and environmentalists. The Senate Subcommittee on Public Lands, National Parks, and Forests held meetings in June 1994, during which Virginia's leaders were faulted for an unwillingness to protect national park sites in Virginia. Representative Michael A. Andrews (D-Texas) introduced a resolution in June to gain congressional opposition to the theme park. The Disney proposal won preliminary approval from regional and county agencies, but the proposal encountered some problems. Historians believed the theme park would trivialize American history. Environmentalists thought it would bring air pollution, traffic congestion, water pollution, and urban sprawl. Local residents thought the park would attract a glut of low-wage jobs and seasonal workers. 45 Related Cases Mineral King Walt Disney expressed an interest in ski resorts as early as the 19305. Disney and other developers determined that Mineral King, located in northern California, had the largest, finest ski areas grouped in one locale. The only obstacle was the lack of an adequate road to the area. Disney had successfully and quietly purchased all the private land in the valley between 1963 and 1964 that included a public campaign of contacting and pressuring then-Govemor Brown to improve the road systems. The cost of preparing the road to meet winter-access standards would have exceeded $5 million. Many residents believed their valley would fill with tourists, whereas others believed the development would prevent Mineral King from becoming a shantytown. Southern California promoters and resort developers worked on plans to build a monorail capable of carrying 20,000 skiers into the valley. In 1965, the Forest Service was asked to generate a prospectus for development of a separate resort. The Forest Service's proposed resort would have had lifts with a capacity of carrying 2,000 people per hour, parking for 1,200 automobiles and resort accommodations for 100 people. Disney's plan was favored because they pledged to preserve the natural beauty of the site while establishing an affordable year-round recreation facility. Disney estimated that the resort would add $570 million to $600 million to California's economy within 10 years; it would add $15 billion in 15 years. Tourists would spend $25 million annually in 46 Mineral King and another $25 million in the San Joaquin Valley. Disney's pr0posal won favor over the Forest Service's plan on December 17, 1965. The resort was scheduled to become a reality by October 1973. The self-contained village was to have a chapel, a skating rink, swimming pools, convenience shops, a theater, a conference center, a post office, a general store, cafeterias, restaurants, and two major hotels. There would be living quarters for employees, a hospital and first-aid station, an automobile service center, a fire station, and a heliport. In the Supreme Court case Sierra Club v. Morton (1971), the conservation group brought suit against federal officials in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, seeking relief against the granting of approval or issuance of permits for commercial exploitation of Mineral King Valley. The District Court granted a preliminary injunction, but the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed it (433 F2d 24). With development of the Mineral King ski resort, Walt Disney was proposing to develop a Disneyland in the wilderness. Residents opposing the development formed the Mineral King District Association and called for public hearings, claiming no adequate study of the area had been completed. Residents also believed the road was too expensive and water pollution would increase. Opposition to the deve10pment included the National Parks Association, the Wilderness Society and the Santa Maria Riding and Roping Club. The Sierra Club led the fight, stating that population pressures from the development would destroy the fragile character of the valley. 47 Disney continued with plans for the ski resort with cooperation from the Forest Service and a team of professionals who completed impact studies on the valley. The Master Plan for the Development of Mineral King was approved on January 21, 1969. Others supporting the development included ski interests, the local Chamber of Commerce, and labor union groups. The conservation group only had public sentiment on their side. Therefore, the Sierra Club focused their energy on bringing Mineral King into the Park System. On March 9, 1977, the US. District Court dismissed an amended lawsuit on the grounds that the Sierra Club had failed to prosecute. However, public sentiment against Mineral King continued. In 1978, 16,200 acres of the game refuge were transferred to the Park System. There was also an outline for the federal government's purchase of 741 acres of private land holdings in the area. The amended Senate version denied compensation to the Disney Corporation and denied any possibility of construction of a ski resort in the area. The Walt Disney Corporation's ski resort plan was defeated (Jackson, 1988). Gettysburg Like the historic battlefields in Prince William County, Virginia possibly endangered by construction of a theme park, Gettysburg was the scene of a climactic battle of the American Civil War. The second battle for Gettysburg was over development of property surrounding the Gettysburg National Military Park. Gettysburg National Military Park comprises 3,700 acres of fields and wooded hills on 48 Pennsylvania's Piedmont beneath the low Blue Ridge Mountains. The park includes the largest portion of the battle site, the 6,000-grave National Military Cemetery and site of the Gettysburg Address, and the new Eisenhower National Historic Site (Roe, 1972). The national shrine is a tourist attraction. Bordering the Gettysburg National Military Park are motels, restaurants and snack bars, filling stations, commercial museums, and souvenir shops. Critics consider development of the area shameful. A 307-foot triple-decked observation tower beside the battlefield, proposed by Thomas R. Ottenstein, a wealthy Maryland news dealer, lawyer, bank director, and real estate developer, was the basis for the second battle of Gettysburg. The proposed $1 million tower would hold 700 people. Three circular observation levels would stand atop the 300-foot shaft of pipe and steel columns. Elevators would carry visitors to the t0p, for a fee of $1 per person. The tower would be staffed by interpreters and would offer audiovisual presentations to instruct visitors. Ottenstein did not appreciate having his proposed project referred to as an "environmental insult. " He believed that the Park Service did not offer proper interpretation of the battle and did not provide visitors with a comprehensive view of the field. Although in proximity to a commercial complex, the tower would rise from the center of a residential subdivision. Neighborhood homeowners were unhappy. The Colt Park site was 1,000 yards from the park's Visitor Center, and the tower would sit behind 49 the Home Sweet Home Motel, the closest commercial enterprise to the High Water Mark of the Confederacy. Ottenstein thought the observation tower would blend with the sky, and he offered to furnish a free tourist bus transit system; he promised that no concessions would be sold near the tower. The tower was promoted as an economic boom for the area, increasing employment, contributing to local business, and stimulating an economic multiplying effect on the Gettysburg tourist and retail business. Support for the project came from the mayor's office, the Gettysburg Borough Council, county commissioners, and other local businesspeople. In 1971, the National Park Service purchased 350 acres within Cumberland Township; the assessed value was $505,000. County commissioners and township supervisors opposed further land acquisitions. The National Park Service, following the guidelines of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, was in the process of developing a master plan for the management, development, and use of the Gettysburg historical area. The lack of zoning regulations at first appeared to leave the Interior Department, the Pennsylvania Historical Commission, and preservation groups without grounds for legal action. However, five residents of Colt Park, representing neighboring homeowners, filed a class-action suit on May 8, 1971, against Ottenstein to prevent construction of the tower on the site. Their complaint alleged that the tower "will become a public nuisance, seriously damaging the peace, quiet, dignity and good order prevailing 50 now" in the residential area. The suit further charged that the tower would create ”mental discomfort" for the residents, would "cause repeated trespasses on private property," and that Ottenstein "has made no provisions for parking in the area of the site." Further, the tower and its customers would endanger the children of the neighborhood, depress property values, threaten the "peace, security, [and] welfare" of the residents, and constitute an invasion of their privacy. The Colt Park residents also had the support of the Department of the Interior, which considered the project an "environmental insult," which would become an ugly commercial project on an American historical site. The National Park Service provided influential and financial support for the opposition groups. However, the Park Service considered itself helpless on legal grounds because it exercises influence only over federal lands. Ottenstein's location was on private property, came under no municipal curbs on land use, and complied with borough and state building codes. A court battle resulted and in one argument, the defense claimed that the Pennsylvania environmental amendment was not self-executing and lacked proper legislative implementation and that the suit violated the Fourteenth Amendment in depriving the defendant of due process and right to a jury trial. The Interior Department did not wish to prevent construction of the tower with unconventional legal theories; instead, they reached a compromise. They forced their decision on the public, feeling that, despite the public's opposition to the project, the will of the administrative process won. 51 This chapter reviewed the literature related to economic development, the role of stakeholders in development projects, the theme park as an example of an expansive economic development project that can influence stakeholder reactions, and historical background on theme parks and other cases related to the study project; Disney’s America. Chapter 3 METHODOLOGY Introduction The research design and methods used in the study, including operational definitions and measures of key variables, are described in this chapter. Selection of the research site is discussed, and the data-collection instruments are explained. Emmflhekeseamh The researchers central purpose in this study was to examine how an expansive economic-development proposal came into conflict with local and national interests and ultimately was defeated. Dahl’s and Gaber’s 1996 study of responses to proposals for siting of municipal shelter facilities identified a pattern of stakeholder responses. The pattern presented by the Disney’s America case in Virginia was selected as a topic to assess what happens when a large company that has a history of successfully constructing theme parks in locations around the world attempts to construct a theme park on a site outside Washington, DC. A content analysis of Washington Post and New York Times articles was used to analyze the role of stakeholders in the Disney's America project's outcome. Further, the researcher developed a set of recommendations for local leaders and community groups who make decisions about new developments. 52 53 The goal of content analysis to transform written text into highly reliable quantitative data can consist of a combination of methods (Singleton, 1988). The reliability and value of the content analysis depends on the clear formulation of content categories and rules for assigning units to categories. The unit of analysis or recording unit is the element of the text described by the content categories. Frequency counts is one of the basic methods of quantification for content analysis. This is in terms of the frequency with which a given category appears in the text. Frequency measures involve two assumptions that should be measured. First, they assume that the frequency of a word or category is a valid indicator of its importance, value, or intensity. Second, they assume that each individual count is of equal importance, value, or intensity (Singleton, 1988). Newspaper content analysis was selected as the method to analyze the stakeholder activities and agenda development surrounding the Disney’s America project because studies of location conflict that involved newspaper content analysis have been used to examine events within a defined period of time. Media accounts not only reflect public perceptions and actions but also can help shape them (Gaber, 1996). Documents from the Prince William County Planning Department provided information regarding the actual plans and policies for the area and interviews with stakeholders involved in the process added additional verification. Study Design 54 This researcher examined strategic organizing tactics reported in newspaper coverage of stakeholder groups involved in the Disney's America project. Stakeholder groups were identified that represented environmental groups, citizen-activist groups, and government officials. The research was carried out in the following phases: 1. The variables associated with the study were identified and clarified. 2. The researcher identified stakeholders in the project through a review and correspondence with area agencies and government offices; then a list was compiled. 3. From that list, the researcher identified the following stakeholder groups for study; environmentalists, historic preservationists, developers, Disney representatives, and government officials. The list of stakeholder groups was cross-referenced with the 1995 Who's Who in America to identify elites associated with the project. Interlocking networks were identified among the stakeholders and individuals identified as elites. An interlocking network is defined as membership in more than one citizen group involved in the project or holding a government position while being identified as a stakeholder involved in the project. 4. Data collection was conducted through the use of archival data, telephone interviews, and site visits. The content analysis that covered articles from November 1993 until November 1994 was intended to clarify information about the relationship between stakeholder agendas and press coverage by area newspapers. Resegch Ouestions 55 The following research questions were posed to guide the collection of data from the content analysis for this study. The same questions were used to address the opposing and supporting stakeholder groups. The three questions were: 1. What collaborations stakeholder groups form? 2. How do environmental, cultural, and economic-development issues affect the project? 3. How do elites influence stakeholders' beliefs and agendas related to the project? Data-Collection Instruments The study was based on both primary and secondary data. The case-study approach, which included a content analysis of press coverage, was combined with assembling evidence to support answers to the research questions that directed the case study. Data from secondary sources, which included planning reports, economic- development studies, and annual reports from the Disney Company, were used to identify patterns of resource use and stakeholder organizing. The data that were used were considered public information and did not require special permission to obtain. Evidence was gathered and applied to the model shown in Figure 6. The stakeholder group or individual identified in the article, stakeholder agenda or tactics covered in the article, and the projected outcome of the project based on the tone of the press coverage were compared. 56 Stakeholder Expansive Economic- Group or Agenda/ Development Project Individual Tactics Outcome Figure 3: Stakeholder model. Content Analysis Content analysis is a technique that is used to analyze the symbolic content of communications; it may involve the description of verbal and/or nonverbal materials (Singleton, 1988). In this case study, it was used to analyze coverage by The Washington fio_st and The New Yorl_< Times of events surrounding the Disney's America project during the designated time frame. The purpose of the content analysis was to answer the research questions and determine whether the press coverage from 11/93 to 11/94 represented the stakeholder’s agenda development. During the events surrounding Disney’s America and does the evidence suggest an interaction between elites as stakeholders and press coverage of the project? Analysis of the findings can assist in better understanding the outcome of a development. Assuming that all the facts are reported, newspapers are considered to be objective, even though newspapers are written for a variety of audiences and their views on an issue may be influenced by news managers, clients, or other groups or individuals. The newspapers selected for the content analysis were The Washington Post and T__h§ 57 New York Times. These papers were chosen because The Wa_shington Post is a local, respected newspaper, and The New Yorltlimes is also a highly respected "peer source" newspaper, meaning that other newspapers and media take their leads from it. Both newspapers are defined as peer sources, and only The Washington Post has come close to challenging the role of The New Yorl_<_'Iln_r_es as the most influential newspaper since World War II (Knopf, 1994). Types of Articles Selected Articles included for analysis involved coverage of the events surrounding the Disney's America project. The researcher sought articles that provided both sides of the stakeholders' debate. The articles covered events that took place between November 1993 and November 1994. Articles were selected using the key words Walt Disney and Virginia while retrieving articles from CD-ROM files. The sample was obtained by selecting every third article from a population of 167 articles printed by the papers, using the key words. Coding Scheme General information on stakeholder theory, characteristics of elites, economic development, and history of theme parks was collected during the literature review to give the researcher background criteria for selecting the variables. Variables included date, name of publication, news source, section, page number, number of words in the article, number of words in the title, photograph(s), authors, type of article, person interviewed, and tone of the theme-positive, negative, neutral, or humorous. Specific 58 coding of variables was as follows: 1. 2. 10. ll. 12. 13. Date Paper selected: The New York_'[i_m_es or The Washington Post Source: reporter's name, API, UPI, other Section of paper in which article appeared Page number within section on which article began Total number of words in article a Historical preservation as the theme Environmental degradation as the headline theme Urban sprawl as the headline theme Economic development as the headline theme Infrastructure improvement as the headline theme Whether a photograph accompanied the article (1 = yes, 2 = no) Person interviewed (l = citizen group, 2 = government, 3 = resident) Citizen group is defined as a representative of an agency or grassroots organization, government is defined as representatives of local, state, or federal government, and resident is defined as a spokesperson who resided in the project area. 14. Tone of article (1 = positive, 2 = negative, 3 = neutral, 4 = humor) Positive articles supported the project, negative articles did not support the project, neutral articles stated both sides of the situation, and humorous articles were satirical or comics. 59 Chi-Square Chi-square analysis is used to test for a relationship between variables. In the next chapter, findings from the chi-square analysis of the data obtained from the newspaper content analysis will indicate the strength of the relationship between variables compared. This chapter discussed the methodology selected to analysis the newspaper accounts of events and stakeholder agenda building around the proposed Disney’s America project. Chapter 4 FINDINGS WWW Newspaper content analysis was selected as the method to analyze stakeholder perceptions of issues surrounding the Disney’s America project because content analysis can be used to transform written text into quantitative data. The reliability and value of the content analysis depends on the clear formulation of content categories and rules for assigning units to categories (Singleton, 1988). Written text can be transformed into quantitative data through frequency counts. Frequency count measures involve two assumptions. One, they assume that the frequency of a word or category is a valid indicator of its importance, value, or intensity. Second, fi‘equency count measures assume each incidence is of equal importance, value, or intensity (Singleton, 1988). For the purpose of this study, the researcher randomly selected 70 articles (n=70) from the New York Times and the Washington Post dated November 1993 through November 1994. Several relationships between variables were analyzed to determine answers to the study’s research questions. The transfonnation to quantitative data was completed in two parts. Part one focused on a series of questions for six categories; page by tone, paper by tone, theme by 60 61 tone, page by theme, paper by page, and paper by theme. A series of questions for the six categories were examined in order to determine the strength and significance of relationships between variables. The statistical tool selected was chi-square analysis to assess the difference between observed cell frequencies and expected cell frequencies in a contingency table. The question presented being did the observed cell frequency reveal a true relationship between the variables in the population. Part two of the content analysis examined the frequency of keyword usage and the category of the stakeholder featured in the newspaper article. These frequency counts were used to determine patterns of stakeholder agenda building and to what degree they influenced the project outcome based on the theory previously presented in the literature review. Chi-Sguare Analysis Page by Tone Question: Is there a relationship between the page where an article appears and the tone of the article? Table 2 - Page by Tone Count Negative Neutral/positive Humor Front page 25.7 48.6 25.7 Inside page 54.3 40.0 - 5.7 The results indicate there is a relationship between the page on which an article 62 appears and the tone of the article. Negative articles are more likely to occur in the inside pages. Paper by Tone Question: Is there a relationship between the newspaper in which the article appears and the tone of the article? Table 3 - Paper by Tone Count Negative Neutral/Positive Humor Washington Post 35.6 45.8 18.6 New York Times 63.6 36.4 84.3 The results indicate there is a relationship between the paper in which the article appears and the tone of the article. Negative articles were more likely to appear in the New York Times. Theme by Tone Question: Is there a significant relationship between the tone of the article and the theme? Table 4 - Theme by Tone Count Negative Neutral/Positive Humor DevelOpment 2 l7 9 Problems of 26 14 2 Development 63 The results indicate a relationship between the theme of an article and the tone of the article. Question: Is there a relationship between the page on which an article appears and the theme? Table 5 - Page by Theme Count Pro - Development Problem of Development Front Page 18 17 Inside Page 10 25 The results indicated by the observed cell percentages and marginal cell values determine that there is a relationship between the page on which an article appears, and the theme of the article. Question: Is there a relationship between the paper in which the article appeared and the theme of the article? The results indicated a relationship between the paper in which an article appears and the theme of the article. Ewes The date of the article was not related to tone or theme of the article. The type of article (opinion or news) was related to date. Forty-four percent (44%) of the Washington Post opinion articles were published in November 1993. The majority of New York Times articles were Opinion articles spread evenly across the year. The _S_ta_l_(e_holders One part of the content analysis of newspaper articles examined the possible existence of a link between elites as stakeholders and influence on press coverage. The only evidence of influence by elites as stakeholders was by the Piedmont Environmental Council's campaign. Of the 107 individuals listed in the newspaper articles selected for analysis, only 22 were also listed in Who's Who in America (1994) a publication used to determine reputation networks; connections based on name recognition or status in the community. There was a significant difference in article length and date and words in the headline title and date of appearance. Both article length and words in headline title were greater in the early period (November 1993 - February 1994) and the latter period (July - November) and were less in the middle (March 1994 - June 1994). Front page articles were less likely to appear in the middle months of the project development. The timing and placement of newspaper articles matches the cycle of stakeholder organizing and agenda building around a development project (see Appendix B). Stakeholder tactics were further analyzed by assessing the responses of the individuals interviewed in the newspaper articles and how the person interviewed or their response related to agenda building by the stakeholder group involved. Organizations presented in this section were individuals interviewed for articles that appeared in the New York Times or Washington Post. The categories represented include citizen groups, government officials, and Walt Disney representatives. 65 Oppgnent’s Tactics The agendas and tactics of stakeholders categorized as opponents to the Disney's America project are discussed in this section. Opponents in the Virginia Piedmont area included wealthy landowners. The Virginia Piedmont, located in the northernmost comer of Virginia, is described as an expanse of rolling hills, white fences, and colonial hamlets. The major form of entertainment is the raising and breeding of horses with a number of prominent families as residents. Opponents to the proposed Disney's America project included Protect, Protect Prince William County, Protect Historic America, the Piedmont Environmental Council, the Coalition of Gainesville Residents, and the American Farmland Trust. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Sierra Club, the National Audubon Society, and the Wilderness Society also were involved. Citing examples of urban sprawl surrounding Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and Disney World in central Florida, opponents feared that the area near Manassas and Haymarket would become overrun by motels, restaurants, gas stations, and souvenir shops, in addition to Disney's hotels, shops, and other amenities. Protect Protect, a grassroots environmental organization, claimed that the Walt Disney Company worked to avoid a state law that would ease building restrictions on the proposed artificial wetland area by requesting that the US. Geological Service downgrade the protected status of a stream on the site. The stream was protected by the Chesapeake 66 Bay Preservation Act, which prohibits land development within 100 feet of streams. Protect's attorney, Robert Elliott, argued that the US. Geological Service approved the downgrade without adequate information about the proposed use for the site. Annie Snyder, an activist opposing the theme park, petitioned Prince William County for creation of a historic overlay district to provide other controls on development along approaches to the historic battlefield sites. Snyder was able to collect petitions from other states opposing the project to send to Michael Eisner, Walt Disney Company president. Protect Historic America Protect Historic America's group of historians, scholars, writers, and journalists argued that the creation of a theme park in the hills and farmland between Washington, DC, and the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia would endanger 13 historic towns, 16 Civil War battle sites, and 17 historic districts. They also argued that the theme park would simplify history and waste agricultural land while overpowering the region with motels, restaurants, gas stations, and souvenir shops. The group had a goal of formulating future strategies to protect and create national historic sites. Historians David McCullough and James M. McPherson waged a campaign, arguing that the project would trivialize American history. The organization also was able to convince Arkansas Democratic Senator Dale Bumpers to conduct hearings to determine whether Congress should have any responsibility for preserving land of historical significance. 67 Protect Historic Prince William County Protect Historic Prince William County, a grassroots organization, spoke to civic groups, the media, and lawmakers. By the summer of 1994, the group claimed 2,000 members and had a budget of $30,000 raised from member contributions, fund-raiser dinners, and sales of anti-Disney paraphernalia. With assistance from the Piedmont Environmental Council, the group filed lawsuits challenging the Walt Disney Company on zoning and planning issues and environmental compliance. They also organized an anti-Disney march at the Washington, DC, Uptown Theater's opening of The L_ion King. The Piedmont Environmental Council The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) is a 22-year-old rural preservation group based in Warrenton, Virginia. PEC consists of a coalition of 70 organizations and approximately 5,000 families from Virginia. It is a tax-exempt community group founded with assistance from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and had been successful in defeating proposed developments for the region in the past. In the past five years, Paul Mellon had given $230,000 to PEC, Andrea Currier's Wrinkle in Time Foundation had donated $155,000, and the Chester du Pont Foundation had donated $268,000 (Gubemick, 1994). The organization maintained that Disney's America would bring crowding, road congestion, and smog to Prince William County, along with changes in land use and transportation patterns. The PEC also raised questions about water and sewer capacity and the state's estimates of tax revenue from the project. Ralph Nader thought Disney's 68 America would become its own private government. The most prominent issue was whether Disney's America would desecrate the site of Bull Run battles. The PEC's top members who set the strategy for confronting Michael Eisner included Chairman Charles Whitehouse, William Dill Rogers, Joel McCleary, and William Backer. On November 11, 1993, after the Walt Disney Company announced plans to construct a theme park, Robert Dennis, President of the Piedmont Environmental Council, began a campaign that cost nearly $2 million (Gubemick, 1994). The organization employed the following tactics: 1. Days after the announcement, the PEC began the Scream of Paincampaign, which consisted of a two-week barrage of media contact, along with radio and print advertising focusing on the public financing of the Disney project. 2. Democratic political consultants, Squiers, Knapp, and Ochs Communications, produced radio and television advertisements warning of environmental damage. 3. The PEC hired Fenton Communications, experts in environmental issues, to coordinate the media strategy. 4. The PEC published a full-page, $50,000 advertisement in The Washington m, which depicted the possible smog and traffic congestion from the theme park. 5. The PEC purchased a full-page advertisement in the February 2, 1994, issue of The Wasfihington Post to publish an open letter to Michael Eisner, CEO of the Walt Disney Company. The letter was supported by historians and preservationist 69 groups. It described the historic value of the sites and included a response form that yielded 5,000 responses from readers. 6. Also in February, the PEC spent $105,733 lobbying the Virginia General Assembly to persuade them to vote against the promised funding from the state. The Walt Disney Company spent $444,348 lobbying for the funding, and on September 21, 1994, their proposal won support from the Prince William County Planning Commission by a 7:1 vote. 7. The PEC helped form Citizens Against Gridlock, a grassroots organization concerned about the potential for increased traffic on L66. 8. The Walt Disney Company responded with articles depicting Disney's America as a celebration of Americana, bylined by Michael Eisner, appearing in The New York Times, USA Today, and The Washington Post. 9. The primary environmental concern highlighted by the PEC involved the Federal Clean Air Act and stated that Disney would need to file environmental-impact studies detailing their development. 10. Another tactic used by the PEC involved riparian rights. PEC had the following advantages: 1. Ability to finance a campaign against a company as large as Walt Disney. 2. Ability to hire consultants to look at alternate sites in Prince William County, study traffic patterns, and survey the environment. Coalition of Gainesville District Residents 70 The Coalition of Gainesville District Residents (CGDR) is a community group that felt that Disney's America would attract a number of low-paying jobs at $5.27 an hour or 30% above minimum wage. The Walt Disney Company would have to import workers from West Virginia to fill the positions in an area where the average household income was $40,000 to $50,000 a year. Also, if the park closed during the winter, a glut of low-income workers would need to collect unemployment during the off-season (Penar, 1994). (See Appendix B) A total of 6,300 jobs were anticipated for the state as a result of the theme park. There was an opinion that added jobs would encourage immigration to the region. A large number of theme-park jobs would not be filled by individuals from the Northern Virginia region, but residents who were already employed in the area, and that their former jobs in the area would be taken by immigrants. Out-of—state immigrants were expected from areas of greater unemployment, particularly West Virginia. In addition, lower-skill immigrants could be attracted to jobs in hotels and restaurants. The American Farmland Trust The American Farmland Trust, a nonprofit rural conservation organization with a membership of nearly 18,000, received much of its financial support from the Rockefeller family, along with the Ford Foundation and the Richard King Mellon Foundation. The American Farmland Trust thought the Disney's America project would change Northern Virginia. The farmland would face pressures of urbanization in a region with more than 6,000 farms and 1.2 million acres in 12 nearby counties that accounted for one-seventh of 71 Virginia's farmland and farm production (The New M Times, 3/23/94). Summg The researcher found that opposing stakeholders used grassroots lobbying to tarnish the public image of the Walt Disney Company. Tactics they used included collaboration with other organizations, resources from influential supporters, and organized support that represented the concerns of constituents. Supporter’s Issues This section identifies the agendas and tactics used by stakeholders identified as supporters of the Disney's America project. Supporters of the project included the Governor's office, the Prince William County Planning Commission, and the Walt Disney Company. Table 6 - Opponents of the Disney's America project and their issues. Stakeholder Issue Protect Legal Protect Historic America Historical Protect Historic Prince William County Legal Piedmont Environmental Council Environmental Coalition of Gainesville District Residents Jobs American Farmland Trust Land use Supporters of the Disney's America project thought that historians, environmentalists, and other opponents were overreacting to the proposed theme park. Supporters of the project said the theme park would celebrate American history. The 72 proximity to Washington, DC. was considered ideal because of the millions of tourists visiting the capital annually. Also, because of a recent recession and military cutbacks affecting the region, Virginia leaders were supportive of new development. Virginia's economy is linked to tourism. In 1993, tourism supported 159,000 jobs and paid $380 million in state and local taxes (The New York Times, 4/3/94). The State of Virginia and local agencies were given the task of evaluating the benefits, costs, and zoning issues relating to Disney's America, whereas the federal government was responsible for assessing the environmental effect of the highway expansion of Interstate 66. The entire process was predicted to require 33 local, state, and federal regulations and 72 permits (The New YorLTimes, 6/23/94). Virginia State Government Supporter Governor F. Allen argued that the Disney's America project would provide 19,000 jobs, $47 million in annual revenue for the state by the year 2007, $238 million in new wages, and $542 million in added sales of goods and services (The New York Times. 6/22/94) (see Table 3). Therefore, in March 1994, the State Legislature approved $163 million in subsidies, mostly to improve roads in support of the project. There was a site-specific road-improvement plan. The state planned to spend $31 million to finance a joint Disney-Virginia advertising campaign, build a state visitor center on the park site, and fund a community-college program to train residents in the tourism industry (Sterling, 1994). Republican senators criticized suggestions that Congress intervene in the Walt 73 Disney Company's plans to construct the theme park. Senator John Warner, R-Virginia, thought the hearing might raise the hopes of winning by opponents because of federal intervention. Senator Pete Domenici, R-New Mexico, believed Congress should not interfere with local authorities' zoning and development decisions when federal land was not directly affected. Governor Allen did not support the idea of federal intervention. Table 7 - Annual Prince William County revenues and outlays from proposed theme park operations Revenue (in millions) Low High Property taxes (direct) $3.0 $ 6.6 Property taxes (off site) $0.8 $ 0.8 Sales taxes $1.8 $ 1.8 Transient occupancy $0.8 $ 0.8 Total county revenue $6.4 $10.0 Operating outlays related to park $1.4 $ 1.4 Net Flow $5.0 $ 8.6 Source: Pearson, Wallingford, and Micou (1994). The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company used the following issues to achieve their agenda of creating a park that would bring history alive for those who were bored by museums and textbooks: 1. Used a false name to acquire the land. 2. Introduced the project to the public with fanfare. 74 3. Hired a number of consultants at $250 an hour to influence Virginia politicians at all levels, while ignoring influential community opinion leaders. 4. Hired Beveridges and Diamond, an environmental law firm, when concern about lawsuits from opposition increased. 5. Pledged $100,000 to the Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites, to promote historic sites in the region, make annual donations to historic preservation groups, and pay for improvements. 6. Failed to respond proactively to negative radio, television, and print advertisements. Prince William County Prince William County had laid the groundwork for intensive development along 1-66 by zoning for 77 million square feet of commercial space. The county wanted to prevent "edge city" creation with new roads and office towers from marring the view of Manassas battlefields and other historic sites. The local government of Prince William County was considered pro-growth, and Governor George Allen felt jilted by the Walt Disney Company after offering $163 million in road improvements and tax breaks to the Walt Disney Company. Winning the Disney project was perceived as a source of jobs and tax revenue for the county. The debate over the park expanded from the state to the national level, involving historic preservationists, citizen activists, and environmentalists. The Senate Subcommittee on Public Lands, National Parks and Forests held hearings and faulted Virginia leaders for a 75 "mindless" commitment to development and an unwillingness to protect national park sites. The following tactics were used: 1. The Prince William County Chamber of Commerce formed the Welcome Disney Committee. 2. Secession by the park from the county was an issue because Walt Disney World near Orlando had become a special taxing district. 3. Secession was an issue because independent cities in Virginia had broad authority and did not belong to adjacent counties, and there was a loss of taxing power for Prince William County. 4. The Walt Disney Company was willing to honor the pledge for 20 years. Table 8 - Supporters of the Disney's America project and their issues. Stakeholder Issue Virginia State Government Road funding Disney Company Public relations Prince William County Planning Commission Bureaucratic In this chapter the researcher provided the findings of the content analysis. The findings were analyzed using frequency counts and chi-square analysis to determine the strength of the relationship between variables and the significance. The next chapter will discuss how the results of the findings can help determine patterns of stakeholder agenda building and influence future decisions about project development. Chapter 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Conclusions Stakeholders involved in the Disney's America project both supported and opposed the project. Concerns about the role of stakeholders, the origin of stakeholders, and stakeholders' influence were evident. The popular example of community opposition to locally unwanted land uses (LULUs) was evident in the Disney's America case. Community Opposition and Not in My Backyard (NIMBY) sentiments often accompany proposals to build incinerators, landfills, group homes, prisons, and, in this case, a theme park. Therefore, if communities have continued emphasis on shopping malls, stadium developments, and other event-management concerns, there will be a need to develop strategic alliances that include mutually beneficial public-private collaborations. To achieve this goal, an understanding of stakeholders representing all facets of a community is necessary. It is especially important to understand and appreciate the influence of grassroots organizations concerned with community and environmental impacts related to theme developments. Such organizations are capable of raising questions that prompt decision makers to proceed with caution when considering new developments. In her study of municipal shelter siting policies in New York City, Gaber (1996) 76 77 identified a cycle of responses to proposals for siting controversial facilities. The community would experience three stages: (a) youth-community opposition closest to proposed development, NIMBY sentiments blunt, irrational; (b) maturity--debate moves into public forum, opposition rhetoric more tempered, less irrational; (c) old age--conflict resolution, arbitration, community and city make concessions. During the development of events surrounding the Disney's America project, the three stages were exemplified by grassroots organizations that mobilized against the project. The stages included neighborhood groups from Manassas who did not welcome the idea of a theme park and spin-off development in their neighborhood. There was also the threat of lawsuits and increased use of the media by larger organizations like the Piedmont Environmental Council, to the final decision by the Walt Disney Company to abandon the project. The proposed Disney's America project did not suit neighborhood activists on a crucial level of economic development. The project did not fit with the community's perceived quality of life (Blakely, 1989). In this instance, the disruption of life in the Virginia Piedmont was at risk, along with the possible disturbance of Civil War battlefields. On January 5, 1994, Disney’s America filed a rezoning petition to the Planned Mixed Use District (PMD) for the 3600 acres under its control (PWC, 19990). The Prince William County 1990 comprehensive plan was adopted by the Board of County Supervisors on February 12, 1991. The document reflected the Board’s long term land 78 use and growth management policies. All future rezoning and special use permit applications are evaluated against the policies that are the Comprehensive Plan. The Plan modified by the Board of Supervisor’s as circumstances developed included an eight-step review process for rezoning and special use permit applications and amendments. Step 1. Application submission, quality control, and distributions to review agencies; Step 2. Initial review and comment by review agencies; Step 3. Planning office review of agency comments and preparation of summary letter; Step 4. Resolution of summary letter issues and submission of final application revisions by applicant; Step 5. Staff report and recommendation prepared and transmitted to the Planning Commission; Step 6. Planning Commission public hearing and formulation of recommendation; and, Step 7. Board of County Supervisors public hearing and action.Based on the evidence presented, the supporters of the project were confident of having the proposed project become a reality, based on their argument that the county needed additional jobs, improved infrastructure, and tourism. The Walt Disney Company had a 70% favorable response for the project for a number of reasons. The governor had obtained approval for $163 million in support for road improvements, the regional transportation planning board approved the project as being consistent with the region's long-range master plan, rezoning had been approved, and special-use permits and comprehensive-plan amendments were approved. 79 In February 1995, Prince William County was in need of $343 million for new schools, fire houses, roads, and other facilities. Questions about water and sewer capacity and traffic projections were issues raised surrounding the Disney development. The county's capital spending plan presented in February called for increased spending to attract businesses in a county desperate for tax dollars after the Walt Disney Company withdrew. With the plan, the county intended to set aside $500,000 during the next fiscal year and $1 million each succeeding year to attract development by paying for roads and some business-loan costs. The plan made a commitment to constructing a building for a recreation center for Prince William Institute. The financing was through efforts by the City of Manassas and George Mason University. Developers in the region had a preference for working in small venues because of the absence of political and administrative restraints for local land-use responsibilities. The Disney Company made a targeted pitch to government officials that did not include a proactive plan for studying the region's history. The Company did not establish links with national opinion leaders such as the historians and community leaders with memberships in opposing stakeholder organizations. The Company's outdated approach of lobbying politicians and businessmen while dismissing other stakeholders represented an undesirable top-down management approach. This resulted in the project's being attacked by grassroots opponents. The Walt Disney Company underestimated the national impact of the project. Their response was to be on the defensive with their image while questioning their 80 opponents' tactics and motives. The Company may have underestimated the national impact of the project, but they recognized what was happening to their image in terms of bad publicity and pending lawsuits from environmental groups. Dahl's (1957) ruling-elite hypothesis asserts that within a specific political system there exists a group of people who exercise power or influence over actors in the system. Among the individuals, there is a group whose preferences prevail. The researcher found that the case-study analysis of the stakeholders' agendas and tactics involved in this case indicated a deliberate and organized campaign by the leading opposing organization, the Piedmont Environmental Council, to defeat the proposed development. Hunter and Mills completed research on power structure that was concerned with societal power. They both saw societal power as rooted in large-scale organizations. Even though Disney qualifies as a large-scale organization, they did not necessarily have all of the power. Hunter and Mills concentrated on ways in which organizations come together to form a power structure in local communities and at the national level. Evidence presented in this research indicated that the Piedmont Environmental Council was led by an organized group of individuals from a background of wealth and property qualifications, described by Hunter and Mills as terms for membership in the power elite. In a related study, Roberts and Bradley conducted a field study to determine whether diverse, competing stakeholders in a domain can use collaboration to intentionally initiate innovative public policy affecting that domain. The researcher’s 81 concept of collaboration had five elements: trans-mutational purpose, explicit and voluntary membership, organization, interactive process, and temporal property. The results reveal that the stakeholders did collaborate to initiate public policy (Roberts, 1991). With the Disney’s America project, there was an example of stakeholder collaboration providing a mechanism for problem resolution. In this case, the problem for the proponents was securing the right to proceed with construction of the theme park. While for the opposition the problem was finding a tactic to halt the construction of the theme park and preserve the Civil War battlegrounds. Examination of the stakeholders’ tactics for completing their agendas supports Robert’s hypothesis that when stakeholders collaborate they can constructively explore different solutions to a problem. It is more evident that the collaboration was also a natural tactic for stakeholders belonging to the same organization and supporting the same agenda. In the case of Disney's America, the power elite among the stakeholders had the potential to influence public opinion concerning the project outcome. One could argue that, in the case of Disney's America, there was a connection between environmentalism and elitism because one of the issues presented concerned environmental impacts. Homback and Morrison argued that the core of voluntary social movement organizations (SMO) is surrounded by a number of concentric rings. The next ring consists of individuals who express sympathy toward and agreement with the issues pursued by the organization. Further out is the ring of individuals neutral to the 82 ' movement, and beyond this ring exists the group who oppose the movement and who may form the core of counter-movement organizations. The newspaper content analysis of The Washington Post and The New York Limgs did not indicate a strong influence of the press by stakeholders who could be categorized as elites. Perhaps this is possible because there were a number of environmental organizations represented as stakeholder groups. Often, in the case of environmental organizations, core environmentalists are disproportionately drawn from the upper-middle socioeconomic level but typically do not have incomes that qualify them as members of the economic elite (Morrison, 1986). Thoughts for Further Research The latest trend in urban-revitalization projects is the theme destination complex, sometimes referred to as the urban entertainment complex (UEC). UECs are considered to be family entertainment centers with many of the attributes offered in theme parks: water parks, golf driving ranges, video arcades, and thrill rides. The trend is growing because retail environments and shopping malls are trying to attract customers. The UEC is considered an anchor for urban redevelopment projects and a driver of urban vitality (Hunter, 1996). Additional studies of importance include: 1. The changes in land-use patterns and population distribution related to event space planning should be investigated. 2. Long-range studies of population changes and environmental effects are 83 needed for projects on the scale of Disney's America. 3. 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APPENDICES APPENDIX A APPENDIX A Background on Theme Parks Disneyland Disneyland was created to be an alternative to the type of amusement park typified by Coney Island. Disneyland was built in Anaheim, California, 40 miles outside of Los Angeles. The theme park opened in 1955 and was promoted as a safe, clean, and aesthetically appealing, imaginative entertainment environment for families (Weinstein, 1992). Walt Disney's plan did not have the support of company studio executives and local bankers. They did not agree on or understand the idea for an amusement park. Despite this resistance, Disney has been credited with saving the American amusement park industry in the 19505. Also, with Disneyland, Disney crated the prototype for a technologically advanced, immensely entertaining, and commercially feasible amusement park in contemporary society (W einstein, 1992). Disneyland was quickly surrounded by support services such as motels, hotels, restaurants, fast-food venues, ice cream shops, and souvenir stands. Walt Disney World In October 1971, Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, became the next phase in Disney's plan to dominate leisure time. The Walt Disney World project, a $600- 93 94 million venture, covers 27,000 acres. Disney was given a special charter from the state, which allowed them to do their own zoning and improvement financing (Flores, 1991). The land holdings were increased, allowing Disney to construct primary and secondary theme parks, theme hotels, and the EPCOT Center. The ultimate contribution to urban design was the project's town for Disney employees, with underground streets and industry strategically located on the outskirts of the living area. Over 20 years later, the once-mral area where Disney World is located has been transformed into a tourist destination. The original $600-million investment has grown into a $3-billion resort complex on 43 square miles with 3 theme parks, 18 hotels, a nightclub entertainment complex, 3 golf courses, a water park, and major convention facilities. Future plans include a fourth park with a $2-billion futuristic community of 20,000 (Flores, 1991). Disney may have attracted millions of tourists, thousands of jobs, hundreds of new businesses, and a population growth, but there have also been problems stemming from that development. Such problems include congested highways, overcrowded schools, overburdened public utilities, and environmental change. Some critics believe that Disney was granted too much autonomy by the 1967 Florida legislature, which set up a special Disney governing district that allowed Disney to ignore the above-mentioned difficulties experienced by the counties and communities surrounding the development. However, Disney was required to build low-income housing for 30,000 of its employees, justify the use of wetlands, improve surrounding roads, and prepare a regional 95 environmental-impact survey. Walt Disney World covers 27,000 acres in Buena Vista, Florida. The new Disneyland, Disney World, has a special charter from the state allowing it to do its own zoning and improvement financing. The entertainment center is climate controlled, and electricity and steam power supply energy for rides and attractions. Tokyo Disneyland In February 1990, Tokyo Disneyland, 35 minutes east of central Tokyo, Japan, opened. Tokyo Disneyland is a venture between American Disney managers and the Oriental Land Company of Japan. The partners endeavor to keep the park sensitive to Japanese culture. The joint venture also planned to have a railroad and real estate company in the 204-acre park. Disney's 45-year contract is predicted to net them 10% of the admissions and 5% of the food and merchandise sales (Neff, 1990). The $6.3-billion economic ripple effect of 1989 revenues of $768 million rivaled the value of that year's annual camera shipments. The park appeals to those interested in cleanliness, order, service, and technology. Tokyo Disneyland's success is closely related to demographics. Three times more people, 30 million, live within 30 miles of the park than in the same proximity to Anaheim's Disneyland (Kurashina, 1990). Also, when the park opened, Japan was entering an era of affluence and leisure. In 1990, there was even the possibility of opening a second park next door. 96 Euro Disneyland Euro Disneyland in Mame-la-Vallee, France, is a $2.6—billion project that opened in 1992. Euro Disneyland covers an area one-tenth the size of Paris on land that used to be sugar-beet fields. The park operates year-round and is largely roofed over because of the area's weather patterns. The park's five theme lands, six hotels, entertainment center, and 18-hole golf course were to be joined by MGM Studies EurOpe and connected to the French super train. The park was to employ 30,000 people (Treichler, 1991). Euro Disneyland encountered criticism from Europeans, who compared the park to a cultural Chernobyl (Toy, 1990). The French government contributed $350 million toward park-related infrastructure. Questions also arose regarding security in a park that would attract a "mix of nationalities" (Toy, 1990). Disney's risk in Europe was minimal. The company invested $350 million in planning for the park and $145 million in the project's equity. In the end, Disney received the right to purchase 4,800 acres from the government at $7,500 per acre, with the option to sell the land to other developers. Unlike other parks, Euro Disneyland is accessible to public transportation. Euro Disneyland lost $928 million in its first full year of operation and has lost $90 million each quarter thereafter. The park has received financial assistance from various investors, and hopes are that it will eventually turn a profit. The Walt Disney Company convinced creditors to invest another $1.05 billion in the park. They also convinced banks to waive 18 months of interest payments worth $280 million (T reichler, 1991). 97 Qtaney's America A new form of entertainment, called the virtual theme park, is emerging, and Hollywood visionaries are betting that virtual-motion simulation and computer reality can transform movie theaters into a cross between the theme park and the video arcade. Simulated roller-coaster rides offer thrills at theaters in many shopping malls throughout America. The popularity of virtual-reality technology was the idea behind Disney's America. The goal of virtual-reality technology is to bring downsized versions of theme parks into suburban malls. Port Disney Disney's 1991 plan to build a $3-billion attraction, Port Disney, next to Disneyland in Anaheim, California, along the waterfront in Long Beach pitted two communities, Anaheim and Long Beach, against each other. Port Disney was slated to be a marine equivalent of the EPCOT Center. The water-theme amusement park was to include six resort hotels, a marina, a cruise-ship port, a harbor-front festival marketplace, new hotels, and a lakeside mall. The proposed resort was to include WESTCOT, a park of science-based rides clustered around Space Station Earth. Port Disney was promoted as a waterfront destination. The Anaheim proposal, which is currently on hold, would have required $80 million of public funds to upgrade the Santa Ana freeway and off ramps, build new parking garages, and convert the downtown into a garden district. The Anaheim proposal 98 also would have required filling in an environmentally sensitive waterway (Betsky, 1991). WESTCOT To boost attendance at Disneyland, there was a proposal to construct a $3-billion WESTCOT Center on 470 acres in Anaheim. There was concern over the effect a second park would have on noise, traffic, and air quality. The company made 225 structural changes, including a parking garage with planters to enhance aesthetics. Disney also wanted federal, state, and local governments to contribute nearly $800 million to expand roads and make other infrastructure improvements. Anaheim offered $150 million in municipal bonds. It was estimated that the project would generate 28,000 jobs and $2.4 billion for the Southern California economy. APPENDIX B APPENDIX B Grassroots Lobbying Phases: A Typical Mobilization Campaign Table 9 - Grassroots Lobbying Phases RESEARCH Poll voters, conduct focus groups, research legislative voting records, economic, engineering, and environmental studies. Basic plan is designed. TARGETING Determine which public officials need to hear from grassroots constituencies and identify constituencies to reach. SENSITIZING Use public relations events, press conferences, ad campaigns, editorial board meetings designed to create the right climate. RECRUITMENT Once constituencies are identified and lists obtained, recruit out of the potential universe of supporters who will sign-on as volunteer activists. ACTIVATION Get activists to write, call, fax, or visit public officials. FOLLOW-UP Thank activists for their help and ask them to report on the tasks completed. Source: Campaigns/Elections December/January 1995 99 APPENDIX C Newspapers Washington Post = 1 New York Times = 2 Date - self explanatory Section A = 1 Metro=2 C Metro = 3 Financial = 4 Weekly = 5 Metro = 6 Metro E = 7 Section F = 8 Type News = 1 Op-Ed = 2 Column = 3 Review = 4 Map = 3 Graph =4 Authors Lee, Odum & Sanchez = 1 Spencer S. Hsu = 2 Richard Moe = 3 APPENDIX C Content Analysis Codes 100 Maria E. Odum & Bill Miller = 4 Hsu & Michael Shear = 5 Michael Shear = 6 David S. Broder = 7 Bob Levey = 10 Martha Hamilton = 11 Stephen C. Fehr = 12 Rudolph A. Pyatt, Jr. = 13 Jonathan Yardley =14 Theme Lifestyle/Quality of Life =1 Unwanted Change=2 Environmental degradation=3 Urban Sprawl=4 Economic Development=5 Historic Preservation=6 Road/infrastructure improvements=7 Pro development =8 Anti development=9 Tourism =10 Tone Positive=1 Negative=2 Neutral=3 Humor=4 APPENDIX D APPENDIX D PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AND EARNINGS COMPARISONS IN SELECTED NORTHERN VIRGINIA COUNTIES Table 10 Per Capita Personal Income and Earnings Comparisons Selected Northern Virginia Counties 1991 Per Capita Prince William Fauquier Fairfax Loudoun Income County (PWC) County County County $20,559 $25,347 $29,554 $26,398 PWC as % of other counties 100.0% 81.1% 69.6% 77.9% Average Weekly Earnings All jobs $408 $383 $608 $499 Non- $356 $344 $603 $462 manufacturing PWC as % of other counties 100.0% 106.5% 67.1% 81.8% Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis and State of Virginia, 1992. Note: Per capita personal income in Prince William County during 1991 was below the level of neighboring metropolitan areas because of lower earnings associated with jobs within Prince William County. The typical Disney-related job is expected to have earnings of only 78% of the average job in the county. 101 MICHIGAN sran UNIV. LIBRARIES llllllllIllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 31293017128772