Utilidors question

mharrington

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In many of these park improvement threads, they seem to want to expand beyond the regular border of Fantasyland. The trouble is, while there is space back there, there is also the entrance to the utilidors. I actually have a map of the utilidors:
89_big.jpg


And here's a shot of the entrance from behind Fantasyland:
81_big.jpg


Haven't the utilidors been like that for as long as the park has been in existence? If so, isn't that what is (at least partially) preventing a decent expansion back there? I would not think it would be possible to expand back there without creating a lot of headaches.
 

mharrington

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Indeed. The driveway and tunnel entrance are the lifeline of the park. They couldn't even function with temporary access.

Expansion could go northwest, and behinbehind Small World, but certainly not northeast. Just isn't feasible.

And yet everyone seems to be clamoring for huge expansions back there, not just in the space behind Small World, but in the northeastern end, too. They argue that it can be feasible, but that the only thing preventing it from happening is funding.
 

Tom

Beta Return
And yet everyone seems to be clamoring for huge expansions back there, not just in the space behind Small World, but in the northeastern end, too. They argue that it can be feasible, but that the only thing preventing it from happening is funding.

Technically, you can do anything with enough money. But the MK doesn't need that massive of an expansion, and it's certainly not worth it to go that direction.

They need to stay south of the fireworks bunker, and really, going due north gets too close anyway.

Northwest is the easiest and most obvious expansion direction.
 

mharrington

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Technically, you can do anything with enough money. But the MK doesn't need that massive of an expansion, and it's certainly not worth it to go that direction.

They need to stay south of the fireworks bunker, and really, going due north gets too close anyway.

Northwest is the easiest and most obvious expansion direction.

But I have another question: haven't those Tangled-themed bathrooms sort of cut off that path to the northwestern end?
 

mharrington

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I think that is part of the reason why a lot of people want to move Small World to Epcot

Unfortunately, it just doesn't seem feasible or practical. I mean, Small World might as well be removed from Disneyland, too. And besides, it's too classic to be removed from a castle park. WDW's Magic Kingdom should have some things in common with Disneyland. I would try and work around Small World being there.
 

kap91

Well-Known Member
All they really need to do is build a new bridge over the railroad running straight into the utilidor entrance. Then the old backstage road and bridge could be removed and the expansion could go from storybook circus (demolishing a tent or two). If they were really ambitious the new bridge could be integrated into the land ala Disney sea and the expansion go beneath it and to the northwest.

That being said-adventures and and tomorrow land expansions would be much less headache.
 

mharrington

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
All they really need to do is build a new bridge over the railroad running straight into the utilidor entrance. Then the old backstage road and bridge could be removed and the expansion could go from storybook circus (demolishing a tent or two). If they were really ambitious the new bridge could be integrated into the land ala Disney sea and the expansion go beneath it and to the northwest.

That being said-adventures and and tomorrow land expansions would be much less headache.

But what about the entrance to the utilidors themselves?
 

Vipraa

Well-Known Member
Build around it. The access road would lead straight into it. Expansion would go in the currently wooded area and old access road would become backstage access to the expansion.

That would mean major rearrangement of backstage roadways aswell as building a road straight through a drainage pond and fireworks launching pad. Even if they found a way around that they close the roads by the launch pads an hour an a half before the show to do continuity safety checks so that would choke off the park for almost 2 hours every night which just would not work.
 

kap91

Well-Known Member
That would mean major rearrangement of backstage roadways aswell as building a road straight through a drainage pond and fireworks launching pad. Even if they found a way around that they close the roads by the launch pads an hour an a half before the show to do continuity safety checks so that would choke off the park for almost 2 hours every night which just would not work.

I wish I had time to draw an illustration but it really wouldn't. It would bypass the fireworks launch area by about the same amount the current road does. It would require the construction of a new road to the cast parking lot, but I believe half of this has already been built. Yes to the drainage pond-but that pond hasn't always been there, should be easy enough to relocate. No this project wouldn't be tiny but it's hardly a huge undertaking. Frankly the park should have been built like this to begin with, the current setup makes no sense.

And hopefully in the process the bridge could actually be disguised or themed so a run of the mill highway overpass isn't located in the middle of the outskirts of fantasyland.
 

kap91

Well-Known Member
What is its purpose?
Drainage?

Generally in Florida, whenever you build something you build a retention pond to prevent flooding. I'm sure one of the engineers around here could elaborate further. It has to do with everything being built on top of swamp.

It's not without precedent for WDW to move these around. Space mountain and LMA for example involved similar movement and rerouting.
 

Tom

Beta Return
What is its purpose?

Drainage?

Generally in Florida, whenever you build something you build a retention pond to prevent flooding. I'm sure one of the engineers around here could elaborate further. It has to do with everything being built on top of swamp.

It's not without precedent for WDW to move these around. Space mountain and LMA for example involved similar movement and rerouting.

This is correct. They added a new retention pond when they built FLE. Because of the high water table, and need to manage water down to the gallon, a certain volume of water must be able to be collected when any surface area is covered with pavement or a building. The more you build, the more retention areas you need.

Moving and re-routing water almost literally takes an act of congress. In actuality, it takes approval by the South Florida Water Management District, which is a governmental extension tasked with approving all water management. Every time Disney proposes to build something new, the plans have to go through the SFWMD for approval. To move a pond would require a very expensive, and several month process.
 

mharrington

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Build around it. The access road would lead straight into it. Expansion would go in the currently wooded area and old access road would become backstage access to the expansion.

Well, you're close: I'd (try to) build around the Tangled bathrooms. There should be some room back there, even though it may be tight.
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom