After quite a period of construction at Universal Studios Hollywood, the new 2016 Dining and Retail center is finally in its final stages of construction, where some more touches are added on the outside and the interiors of the building are being prepared for opening. In this quick update we’ll take a look at that new complex, as well as a very quick look at Jurassic Park and studio construction.
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Let’s start at the side of the complex, where the first building you will see is the new Universal Studios Store, the old one next door has already closed its doors. 
The next wonderful looking facade on the building seems to be the front to the exact same store, just a different facade to make it look a lot nicer. 
Next door to which there is a… STARBUCKS. Because where else would you find a Starbucks but everywhere? Still, the building looks very nice. 
It quickly became clear that this is one of those mega-Starbucks stores, like the one found at Downtown Disney, where they can serve hundreds of customers an hour. 
This Starbucks takes up 3 different facades/ store fronts, to which I must add… that they all look very neat and detailed!
Back to the HUGE new Universal Studios Store, that can be seen entirely in this shot (just to give you an idea of how large it actually is. 
On the opposite side of the building, next to the new Starbucks across from Universal Plaza, you’ll find more facades, what’s inside of here is currently unknown. We’ll find out soon!
To finish off looking at the the new complex, let’s take a look at the front of the Universal Studios Store facade. The hispanic style of the building, or the front as a whole I must say, pays homage to one of the original welcome centers of the studios in the old days. 
Here’s a look inside, where they are currently moving merchandise from the previous Universal Studios Store to the new one. 
They seem to be going for the same style inside as the old store did. Lots of wood, spacious displays for the merchandise. 
Here’s some of the minimal landscaping around the building. Do note that there are multiple palm trees surrounding the entirety of the building. 
Let’s take a quick look at other parts of the park, where Jurassic Park The Ride is still under refurbishment. The lagoon seems to be painted blue now… not sure if I like that, or what the reason is. They have reopened the Raptor encounter and smoking area next to it. The upper-level of the Jurassic Cafe remains closed though. In addition, the boat that they seemed to use for testing hasn’t moved an inch in three weeks. For those wondering, the first lift hill has been repainted green again, as it has been for most of its existence. With this extended refurbishment, the obvious question remains… will they finally be updating the ride’s animatronics?
Here’s a little view at the clearing of land for the relocation/creation of some sound stages. Will we see Diagon Alley coming to the Lower Lot (of the Theme-Park), once the new sound stages will be located near the Metro sets?
Last but not least, in case you didn’t know yet… The Wizarding World of Harry Potter has been having plenty of technical rehearsals lately! So step by the park some time soon, there’s a good chance they’ll open up for at least a few hours! We just published our ‘Exploring The Wizarding World of Harry Potter‘ post! Check it out!
Thank you for checking out this quick Universal Studios Hollywood update, I’ll be back with a lot more in the near future! If you haven’t yet, check out our New Revolution update from this weekend, and of course the look around the Wizarding World of Harry Potter!
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