Why it's there: Plaza Hotel

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Thursday, November 29, 2007
Matt Hochberg

Last week we talked about a store on the Streets of America and why it's there and this week we'll stay on the Streets of America to talk about one big building and why it's there. Like last week, this week's building directly references a New York building and this one is no mystery. It's a landmark building in New York and we're not surprised that this building made its way to the Studios.

This facade is a direct copy of the Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York along Fifth Avenue and near Central Park. The French Renaissance château-style building was designed by Henry Janeway Hardenbergh and opened to the public October 1, 1907. The Plaza was accorded landmark status by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1969 and is, with the Waldorf-Astoria, the only New York City hotel to be designated as a National Historic Landmark. Much like the real Plaza Hotel where celebrities would often stay, the facade at the Studios has been home to many meet-n-greets of Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse and currently the home of Kim Possible.

There is one clear difference between the two buildings. In the window above the awning of the building, in the real Plaza Hotel are two leter P's but in the Studios version there is a T. The reason for that is the letter "T" in the Studios is likely there because when the Studios opened in 1989, Donald Trump had just purchased the Plaza Hotel in 1988 and the "T"stands for Trump.