Disneyland Resort Names New President

George Kalogridis has been announced as the new President of the Disneyland Resort.

Kalogridis is 55 and has been with Disney for 38 years. He replaces 54-year-old Ed Grier, who has retired.

Kalogridis most recently served as Chief Operating Officer of Disneyland Paris.

He was a senior VP at Disneyland in Anaheim during the time Disney's California Adventure was in development and had its less-than-succesful opening, so I can't help wondering whether he signed off on the non-Disney, off-the-shelf concepts which are now being redone.

California Adventure is currently in the midst of a billion-dollar remodel and expansion.

Given what has transpired at the Disneyland Resort over the Columbus Day weekend, the first item on George's agenda should be parking!

Update: The new Disneyland President has given the Register an exclusive interview. He pledges to be in the parks frequently and be very visible, which will be a nice change of pace from his predecessor. I think it's extremely important that the people running the parks see firsthand what's working -- and what's not -- in order to run them with the guest experience foremost in mind.