Is this magical neighbourhood in BC's Fraser Valley a Disney dupe? (VIDEO)
A part of BC’s Fraser Valley is getting fantastical praise for its likeness to the “happiest place on earth,” according to a social media video.
The District 1881 neighbourhood is in Chilliwack and boasts picturesque restaurants and shops, wide sidewalks, cheerful lanes, and lots of colour and art in the three-block stretch.
@fuelforthesole Did you know Disney World is located in Downtown Chilliwack? 🤯 #chilliwack #chilliwackbc #britishcolumbia ♬ original sound – 🤍
Meagan Smith and Andy Jaffray are behind the comparison through their Instagram and TikTok accounts “fuelforthesole” and told Daily Hive they made the video after finding the spot on Yale and Young Roads very pretty.
“I was literally just wandering the streets of Chilliwack when I came across this area, and I was in literal shock. My audience is always attracted to visually appealing things, so I knew they would like this,” they said.
“I’m definitely surprised by the amount of views, but I knew it would do well,” as of Friday, the TikTok alone has been viewed more than 240,000 times.
Dave Algra is with Algra Bros. Developments Ltd, the developer behind the District 1881 neighbourhood, and says it’s just awesome to see the response to the fairly new neighbourhood.
“I thought it was super fun. If not the first time that I’ve heard people tell me that before. I thought it was really well done,” he said about the video.
He says while he gets why people get the Disney vibe, the design is actually modelled off historic cities.
“On the design of it, we didn’t come up with anything new or unique we basically copied the size and scale and massing of old cities in Europe,” he said.
In particular, the walkability of the sidewalks and the mix of retail and residential spaces in places like Holland and France.
“Disney’s a little bit different scale, but I think just all the different colours and textures of the buildings is not something you see often. And then all of our buildings are new, and they’re all in new condition and clean,” he said, adding that normally a city will have buildings of different ages and architectures.
“That might be where people are picking up the Disney World reference.”
Magic Kingdom during the Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary Celebration. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
And it might even have a bit of a Disney smell. The parks are famous for their use of smellitzers to create that iconic and nostalgically sweet smell.
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“We actually have Zilla’s Donuts right there, and they provide us that donut scent,” he said, laughing.
But not everyone finds the comparison amusing.
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Some comments range from questioning putting Chilliwack in a positive light or on the unhouse people who are in the area.
“Please don’t compare disneyworld to Chilliwack 🤮” one person said.
Others called it an ad, which the creators say isn’t the case, they just wanted to show this spot.
We asked the creators what they thought of the negative reactions from some.
“I was a bit surprised by the negative response to this. I saw this as an improvement to the downtown core. Whereas locals think it’s basically “lipstick on a pig.”
“I have been to Disney many times and it legitimately feels the same!”
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