Crews are beginning to disassemble temporary fixtures added during a refurbishment project in the Italy World Showcase Pavilion at EPCOT. According to reports, the construction work is nearly complete.
Walt Disney World Resort guests first noticed changes to Italy’s tallest building, the red brick tower. At that time, crews blocked the area with construction walls and surrounded the tower with scaffolding decorated with fake brick scrims, mimicking the design of the actual building.
Me (who has been to actual Italy and seen it in person) when they show St Mark’s tower in #AHauntingInVenice: “ooooo they have that in Epcot!”
Me (who has been to actual Italy and seen it in person) when they show St Mark’s tower in #AHauntingInVenice: “ooooo they have that in Epcot!” pic.twitter.com/0hSXwDrpLV
— Roems✨ (@Roems) September 23, 2023
As of July 15, the refurbishment project is nearly complete. During a recent visit to EPCOT, WDWNT noticed that most of the scaffolding and decorative scrims had been removed from the Italy World Showcase Pavilion tower, exposing the real building underneath.
Construction walls, also decorated with fake brick scrims, remain at the bottom of the tower, blocking guest access to the area. Crews are likely working on the finishing touches of the refurbishment, and it’s unclear when the final remnants of the project will be removed.
The Italy World Showcase Pavilion tower is a replica of St. Mark’s Campanile, the bell tower at St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, Italy. Walt Disney World Resort doesn’t appear to have changed the original design during the refurbishment; it likely included standard material maintenance and potentially some repainting. The brickwork and ornate carvings at the top of the tower remain the same.
Walt Disney World Resort hasn’t issued a public statement about the ongoing work in the Italy World Showcase Pavilion at EPCOT. However, this isn’t unusual: Disney rarely issues statements about standard maintenance projects, unless they’ll significantly impact the guest experience (like an attraction closure). Crews are currently working on another mystery refurbishment between the Mexico and Norway World Showcase Pavilions in EPCOT.
Do any other EPCOT World Showcase Pavilions need refurbishment projects like this one? Share your thoughts with Disney Dining in the comments!
