The happiest place on earth has plans to add to the fun.
For decades, Disney’s theme parks in Southern California have not seen such a significant expansion.
The city council of Anaheim has approved a plan to expand the Disney California parks, potentially allowing visitors to experience the wintry village of Arendelle from “Frozen” or the lively and animal-filled city of “Zootopia”. This would be a new addition to the park for visitors to enjoy.
Disney plans to invest a minimum of $1.9 billion within the next ten years to revamp its 490-acre property in Southern California. This would be the largest expansion project for Disney’s theme parks in California in many years, with the goal of providing visitors with more interactive and engaging experiences. In addition to this, Disney will also be obligated to allocate tens of millions of dollars towards enhancing streets, providing affordable housing, and improving other facilities within the city.
After an eight-hour meeting that started on Tuesday evening, the council unanimously agreed to the project. However, a second vote in May is necessary for the final approval of Disney’s plan.
The proposal would not increase Disney’s presence in the tourism-based city of Anaheim, but it would assist in the incorporation of new attractions and entertainment options by allowing the corporation to move its parking to a new multi-level building and renovate the extensive lot. Additionally, it would bring about modifications in the utilization of its properties.
Located 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles, the city of Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, and the Downtown Disney shopping area is surrounded by freeways and residential areas. As such, the company views the proposal as crucial in order to continue developing significant new attractions.
A considerable portion of the feedback given to the city council centered on Disney’s proposal to purchase a public street adjacent to the amusement park and convert it into a pedestrian pathway, along with their plan to construct a crosswalk on a nearby street.
According to experts on the case, even though no project or change can be flawless, in this particular scenario, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.
During the meeting, Disneyland Resort’s president, Ken Potrock, expressed their readiness to introduce a new level of immersive entertainment in Anaheim. Over the past twenty years, Disney has invested in projects such as Cars Land, Pixar Pier, Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, and Avengers Campus, as reported by AP News articles.
It is uncertain which stories Disney will choose to showcase, as the new project is expected to take several years.
According to a report by the Themed Entertainment Association, Disneyland was the second-most visited theme park in 2022, with 16.8 million visitors entering through its gates.
Anaheim, the most populous city in Orange County, houses a population of 345,000 people and is also home to a professional baseball team and a national hockey league team. It is projected that hotel revenue, which typically contributes to half of the city’s overall revenue, will increase to $236 million this year.
