Saturday, May 9, 2009

Breaking News: Wing Chao, WDI Executive Vice President will be retiring from WDI on June 3



After Marty Sklar, another WDI long time Imagineer, Wing Chao, Executive Vice President, Master Planning, Architecture and Design, will be retiring from Walt Disney Imagineering on June 30.

As you may not know Wing Chao as well as Marty Sklar, here is a little resumé of what he's been working on during his WDI career: "Working with Imagineers and world-renowned architects and designers, Wing oversaw the designs and master plans of Disney resorts, Disney Vacation Clubs, Downtown Disney entertainment centers, restaurants, retail venues, and office buildings in California, Florida, Tokyo, Paris, and Hong Kong. He also oversaw the master planning for the town development of Celebration in Florida and Val d’ Europe at Disneyland Paris Resort.

Wing led the design direction of the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, Disney Cruise Line’s two ships, as well as the two new ships under construction. He was part of the teams that negotiated with the French government to build the Disneyland Paris Resort and the Hong Kong government for Hong Kong Disneyland."

For his design excellence, Wing has received many awards and accolades including the American Institute of Architects Outstanding Achievement Award.

I never met Wing personally - I think my co-author Didier Ghez did interviewed him for our Disneyland Paris book - but what i would like to say is that i think Wing did a great job on Disneyland Paris, and i am very grateful to him for that, and many other projects he helped to design. I wish him all the best for his new life.

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