Disney Expanding Storyliving Communities
Asteria will include 4,000 homes on 1,500 acres near Raleigh, NC.
Disney has announced plans to develop its second Storyliving by Disney master-planned community in Chatham County, NC, in proximity to Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, NC.
The plans for what will be known as Asteria, jointly developed by Walt Disney Imagineering and Scottsdale, AZ-based DMB development, encompass more than 4,000 residential units including single-family homes and multifamily units.
The 1,500-acre community will include homes specifically designated for active adults in the 55+ category. Sales of units are expected to begin in 2027. The Asteria community will be part of the larger Chatham Park master-planned community by Preston Development Corp.
Like the first Storyliving community, which is under development in Rancho Mirage, CA about 50 miles west of the original Disneyland in Anaheim, Asteria will be designed by Disney Imagineering and staffed by Disney cast members.
“The announcement of the Asteria community builds upon strong initial interest for our first Storyliving by Disney community in California and will expand Disney-branded communities to the East Coast,” said Claire Bilby, senior VP of Disney Signature Experiences Emerging Businesses, in a release.
Asteria homeowners will become part of a club who will have access to the community’s amenities, including a wellness and recreation center, a restaurant, tennis courts and swimming pools.
The club also will feature what Disney Imagineers call “enrichment programming,” with experiences that may include storytelling dinners inspired by Disney films, craft lessons with Disney artists and other Disney-themed activities.
“The Asteria community will offer future residents a unique lifestyle thanks to distinctive Disney placemaking. A range of home styles will line quaint streets leading to a mix of community amenities designed to showcase the area’s surrounding natural beauty,” a Disney marketing brochure for Asteria reads.
According to the brochure, Asteria will be aligned with Chatham Park’s commitment to open green space and to “encourage exploration.” The community will feature acres of neighborhood parks and miles of walking and biking trails.
“We’re looking forward to collaborating with Disney to bring another Storyliving by Disney community to life,” said DMB Development CEO Brent Herrington, in a release.
“Just as the desert setting inspired our teams with the Cotino community, North Carolina’s rich landscape and history is at the heart of our initial planning work with Walt Disney Imagineering. We’ve got a lot of great ideas to showcase the beauty of this area,” Herrington added.
The team at Walt Disney Imagineering said it had researched the region to develop the Asteria community’s theme. The Imagineers said they were Influenced by the nearby universities in Research Triangle in designing Asteria as a “a campus of discovery.”