The beachfront at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground, known as Clementine’s Beach was set to change forever until Covid-19 brought virtually all normal activities at Walt Disney World to a halt. The question many campground fans will be asking themselves now is, will this be a full pardon or a temporary reprieve.
Work on the new Reflections Resort started in mid 2019 and at the time it seemed to have little impact on the neighbouring FWRC, but by January 2020 it had definitely been established that the new resort would be much closer to the campground than at first anticipated and was actually going to take over parts of it.
Planning permissions filed in May revealed that the long stretch of beach, backed by mature trees, that greets guests as they disembark from the park and resort boats was to be given over to a series of Bungalows, much like those at the Polynesian Resort and Wilderness Lodge.
As our own sketch shows construction on the Reflections Resort would have made the campsites almost adjacent, if not an extension of the new DVC location, and as usual, whenever change happens in Walt Disney World outcry follows.
“… there are indications that construction work on the Reflections Resort, the main threat to the idyllic and popular Campground beach, has stalled.”
The outcry however was limited, with the petition to save Clementines Beach attracting just over 200 signatures at the turn of the year, as the trees began to fall and nothing but blue sky began to show over the rooftops of pioneer hall and crocket’s tavern.
This however was certainly due to the practical understanding that by now nothing was going to stop development rather than a sign of disinterest, as when the Disney corporation breaks ground, there isn’t much at guest level that is going to stop the bulldozers.
Now with the tourist industry struggling to get back on it’s feet and Disney cutting back wherever they can, rumours have circulated from a few observant people that there are indications that construction work on the Reflections Resort, the main threat to the idyllic and popular Campground beach, has stalled.
In June of 2020 unofficial Disney news outlets began reporting that elements of the work site dedicated to the in-progress DVC Resort were being dismantled. Although work seemed to have been continuing in April, with photographs showing the roped off areas and sad deforestation of the beach and it’s neighbouring headland, work had yet to resume.
With all mention of Reflections now having disappeared from official DVC and Disney websites; the appearance of landscaping materials (specifically grass seed) showing up at the construction site. The apparent dismantling and removal of construction equipment and rumours, apparently emanating from the contractors themselves, that delivery of materials had been cancelled, strongly suggests that this project has been indefinitely postponed with a likelihood that it will follow the trend of other quietly shelved Disney developments and be permanently cancelled.
Strain on the company’s budget to complete renovations of existing attractions, especially in EPCOT, will surely mean that even if this is not the case, and with projections of commercial recovery estimated at between 2 to 3 years, that this resort’s chances of even getting back off the ground have diminished dramatically.
“Though some might take heart that this could see Clementines Beach retained, though with an altered aesthetic, this will be a disappointment to those who were excited by the grand scale of the Reflections Resort.”
Of course progress has left it’s mark. There is a strange, desolate, empty space, visible along the tranquil waterfront leading to the ‘Settlement’ area and this will require some talented landscaping to restore if indeed the indications are correct.
That completion of the new Tri-Circle D Ranch doesn’t necessarily mean Reflections can restart, as the ranch was a vital component to operations, being as it housed the horses used in parades and experiences around Walt Disney World.
Though some might take heart that this could see Clementines Beach retained, though with an altered aesthetic, this will be a disappointment to those who were excited by the grand scale of the Reflections Resort. Will this Riverside Lodge become a footnote in the history of Walt Disney World? A mark of the sacrifices that was made to ride out the Covid storm? Will it one day be the subject of YouTube videos, as a little known fact about the 16th DVC Resort that never was? Or will the rumours prove groundless and will the work resume? Only time will tell.
