How can the back area of the Magic Kingdom be used as expansion?

[mharrington]

I've seen a few threads here and there showing how to expand the Magic Kingdom in the back, behind Fantasyland. However, I would like to know how it can be possible, given that the back of Fantasyland is where they have the entrance to the all-important Utilidors?

I would think it would be very difficult to build anything back there without creating a major headache for the people getting in. And then there's the issue of the fireworks. More to the point, the fireworks fallout zone, as well as the launch area, would have to be contended with as well.

I'm pretty sure, in all the 50+ years of the Magic Kingdom's existence, there's a reason why they haven't done anything back there. Even if it isn't the only entrance to the Utilidors, I'm pretty sure it's the big main entrance.

 

[oogie boogie man]

The sections on the left and right can be used. I'm not sure about the center, they would have to build above the section and make the dropoff section like a basement.

 

[lazyboy97o]

You could leave the entry where it is and build over top. It would not be too dissimilar to building a podium parking garage. Depending on how it’s done it could even be relatively open to allow for ventilation.

Another alternative is to relocate the entrance.

Fireworks fallout can also be handled. Roofs can be designed to handle the issue. Even as an open space the fireworks at Magic Kingdom are further away from guests than they are at other parks, even Disney ones.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

I see two viable options, the yellow section which would be accessed between the river and the haunted mansion and the red section that would be accessible via the circus area, and would require moving the road slightly

 

[mharrington]

I see two viable options, the yellow section which would be accessed between the river and the haunted mansion and the red section that would be accessible via the circus area, and would require moving the road slightly View attachment 726873

Isn't the area in yellow going to be used for the mysterious expansion involving "Coco", "Encanto" and Disney villains?

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Isn't the area in yellow going to be used for the mysterious expansion involving "Coco", "Encanto" and Disney villains?

Yes, that’s the area they mentioned as the potential expansion area.

 

[mharrington]

You could leave the entry where it is and build over top. It would not be too dissimilar to building a podium parking garage. Depending on how it’s done it could even be relatively open to allow for ventilation.

I would think that it would not be easy to do. I barely even know what podium parking is.

Another alternative is to relocate the entrance.

In all the fifty-plus years that the park was around, I'm not sure if it was ever relocated.

Fireworks fallout can also be handled. Roofs can be designed to handle the issue. Even as an open space the fireworks at Magic Kingdom are further away from guests than they are at other parks, even Disney ones.

Fallout may not be that easy to handle, if what happened in November of 2014 is an indication. One night then, a few fire embers fell on the grass for the brand-new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, catching fire. The area was evacuated, but they were able to quickly contain the fire before any significant damage was done.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I would think that it would not be easy to do. I barely even know what podium parking is.

Ever see a building that's built on top of a parking garage? That’s typically a podium, there’s a concrete structure holding up another structure. They can be designed in a way that allows for what is above to not directly align with the base of the podium.

How do you define easy? Sure, it’s not as easy as building a simple box in a field but it’s also something that the architects, engineers and contractors hired by Disney would all be familiar with and be able to design and build. It’s not even a new idea. Remember, the city center EPCOT was supposed to be built above a service level that provided similar access and that idea was based on real places like Midtown Plaza in Rochester, NY.

In all the fifty-plus years that the park was around, I'm not sure if it was ever relocated.

Again, just because something has not been done before does not mean it cannot be done. There hasn’t been any need or desire to relocate the entrance because additions to the park have been placed elsewhere.

Fallout may not be that easy to handle, if what happened in November of 2014 is an indication. One night then, a few fire embers fell on the grass for the brand-new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, catching fire. The area was evacuated, but they were able to quickly contain the fire before any significant damage was done.

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train has real plants on it and real plants are combustible. The reason the whole thing didn’t catch fire is because assembly buildings can and do use non-combustible materials and fire rated assemblies. There are buildings designed to have fireworks and other pyrotechnic effects launched from their roof.

 

[mharrington]

Again, just because something has not been done before does not mean it cannot be done. There hasn’t been any need or desire to relocate the entrance because additions to the park have been placed elsewhere.

I've always thought that the reason for the lack of desire to relocate the entrance came from the same issue as elsewhere, which is money, or, more to the point, the lack of willingness on the part of management to spend it.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I've always thought that the reason for the lack of desire to relocate the entrance came from the same issue as elsewhere, which is money, or, more to the point, the lack of willingness on the part of management to spend it.

So far there is no need to relocate the entrance. There are other places where the park can be expanded without doing that work. Whether or not doing something is worth the cost is dependent on context and can change over time.

 

[oogie boogie man]

I think it's possible to build above the center dropoffs. Because Magic Kingdom itself has always been above ground. Most of it is on the 2nd floor (or 1st floor if you consider it a basement).

 

[lazyboy97o]

I think it's possible to build above the center dropoffs. Because Magic Kingdom itself has always been above ground. Most of it is on the 2nd floor (or 1st floor if you consider it a basement).

The utilidors are a basement. Their design and function is of a basement and they don’t actually exist under most of the area of the park. That the grade was built up after the fact is not really that important. Their design really would not provide a template for building guest space over the entrance complex because that truly would be a platform on which you would then build the guest space.