New entrance at DHS

[flynnibus]

But the road would pass through the conservation area also. If it's going to happen we should see permits filed with the South Florida Water Management District.

So what.. Roads cross the conservation areas all over. Look right on the opposite side of world drive in your image.

Most of this is about land suitability and offsets. Both of which can be overcome if you are motivated.

 

[rckid]

Personally I feel what would be best is if Disney made the side entrance off of Buena Vista Dr. an entrance only for buses and made a new entrance off of either Victory Rd. or Osceola Pkwy. Either way it sounds like if the rumor is true, then they must be wanting to use the land that the main entrance currently lies on for expansion. I'll personally be excited over any major change that comes to make both Hollywood Studios or Magic Kingdom a larger park all together.

 

[Kobe!!]

Didn't read through this whole thread but isn't this the plans that have been in the parking lot's break room since 2010... that I've at least been aware of?

 

[WeekendGM]

Orlando Sentinel article from the early nineties said this

The ranch is to ''mitigate'' or compensate for the 600 wetlands acres Disney plans to destroy as it builds Celebration, a 5,200-acre shopping and residential complex, and other developments on its property in Orange and Osceola counties.

The other development turned into Animal Kingdom.

The RCID documents mention this mitigation as

Through the permits, the District and its major landowners agreed to extensive on-site and off-site mitigation to offset the impacts of development on 729 acres of on-site wetlands. On-site, the size of the Conservation Area was increased to 8,325 acres. A 410-acre wetland north of Epcot that had been degraded by diversion of Bonnet Creek was restored by raising the water elevation several feet. Off-site, the District’s major landowners acquired and funded the restoration of the 8,480 acre Walker Ranch, located 13 miles south of the RCID in Osceola and Polk Counties. The ranch is within the Reedy Creek drainage basin and includes xeric, mesic, flatwood, hydric, and aquatic plant communities. Approximately 1,673 acres of wetlands and 912 acres of uplands on the site are being restored or enhanced.

And from the documents on the RCID website they then set up two tier system to evaluate the wetlands that remained in the RCID property,

Class I Criteria applies to all areas (wetland and upland) within the Wildlife Management Conservation Area (WMCA), all wetland covered by conservation easements, and all wetland that provide habitat for protected species. All other wetlands not identified for impact are defined as Class II.

From the Documents the RCID seems to not be keen to anything being done in Class I wetlands but this is just my take on what is publicly available about the wetlands of the RCID.

 

[spacemt354]

Personally I feel what would be best is if Disney made the side entrance off of Buena Vista Dr. an entrance only for buses and made a new entrance off of either Victory Rd. or Osceola Pkwy. Either way it sounds like if the rumor is true, then they must be wanting to use the land that the main entrance currently lies on for expansion. I'll personally be excited over any major change that comes to make both Hollywood Studios or Magic Kingdom a larger park all together.

Welcome! And well said. Walt Disney said WDW had enough land for all the ideas imaginable, but it seems like DHS especially has boxed itself in and limited the amount of expansion possible. Even something as small as a road closing is a step in the right direction to me, and opens the door to the potential for growth in the future.

Perhaps there is "a new hope" (a subtle yet not subtle reference to wishing for some sort of Star Wars expansion in DHS)

 

[articos]

When it comes down to it, if Disney wants to build, they'll build. There is land set aside in the case of needing to build on conservation lands, so they can do a swap. The preference is build on Class 2 conservation if possible, per RCID, but if they need to build out on Class 1, they will. It's more expensive, as they have to put in more fill and they seem to usually remediate with a larger swap. In general, Reedy Creek will do what's best for the property's needs. Best way to find out if something like this is happening is watch for the permits.

 

[marni1971]

I'm turned around here. Is the main entrance going away or the back entrance going away?

This proposal is to remove the original World Drive entrance, and potentially keep the small BVD gate for bus access only.

There have been several plans over the years. This, move parking over World Drive and run trams across a new overpass behind RnRC, keep the parking lot but build deck parking in its place...

I agree. If traffic was to exit onto Victory Way as-is after Fant! exits it will be a nightmare. Overpasses would be needed near the pop entrance and the Osceola intersection to keep things running. With the above grade junction planned for DTD and the long term proposal for one on World Drive at Vista Blvd behind the MK auto plaza, the powers that be do know traffic signals aren't the answer to everything thankfully.

 

[Millionaire2K]

According to the RCID comprehensive plan most of the land outside of the entrance road is consider unsuitable for construction. Here is the map from the plan, green is unsuitable, red suitable, yellow marginally suitable.

RCID plan acts as a guide and exceptions need to AND CAN BE made to it. Over time things get changed. The usage plan above can be adjusted. Heck most of WDW was just a swamp.

Also it show Un suitable land. But in todays world anything can be done to make it suitable. Much of Southern Manhattan was built on the river. New Orleans is built WELL inside a major flood plane. More like an annual one.

Also portions of the Green zone in that plan will be used by the new road and entrance.

 

[Millionaire2K]

I really can't believe that the land between PC and DHS is all that "sensitive" at this point considering it is now surrounded be expressways and constant traffic. So all they should need to do is buy some ranch land and donate it to the state or the Nature Conservancy to offset any development. IMO

This is exactly what would happen. MANY companies do this. It just will add to cost of a project and is not optimal.

On another note. I think the best course of action would be to build a new parking garage on half the DHS lot and use the other half for park expansion. The RC plans suggest many times that the many parking lots would be great for future expansion. I'm not sure about the other parks but with HS it seems like a good idea.

Maybe with the DTD garages and the new entrance they will decide to build a DHS garage also.

 

[jt04]

This is exactly what would happen. MANY companies do this. It just will add to cost of a project and is not optimal.

On another note. I think the best course of action would be to build a new parking garage on half the DHS lot and use the other half for park expansion. The RC plans suggest many times that the many parking lots would be great for future expansion. I'm not sure about the other parks but with HS it seems like a good idea.

Maybe with the DTD garages and the new entrance they will decide to build a DHS garage also.

I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps they can get a bulk discount on parking garages.

I got attacked several years ago by people who claimed Disney would "NEVER" build parking garages on WDW property because they had so much land to work with. But there are definitely areas where parking structures make perfect sense including DHS. We will see soon if that is the plan.

 

[haiku]

Or off of Osceola Parkway.

 

[unkadug]

I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps they can get a bulk discount on parking garages.

I got attacked several years ago by people who claimed Disney would "NEVER" build parking garages on WDW property because they had so much land to work with. But there are definitely areas where parking structures make perfect sense including DHS. We will see soon if that is the plan.

Attacked? Really? I find that hard to believe.

 

[luv]

An Osceola Pkwy entrance is a much better idea than a Victory Way one, IMO.

 

[George]

Regardless of where traffic gets routed or if a parking structure gets built, I hope someone realizes that exactly two lanes of traffic would fit under the BAH.

 

[scpergj]

An Osceola Pkwy entrance is a much better idea than a Victory Way one, IMO.

I have to agree. Victory Way would need a bunch of infrastructure work to allow for as much traffic as would be added by the HS entrance. Either one is interesting, though...have to wonder why they would make that change.....

 

[coolbeans14]

This could be a very interesting development...

 

[PhotoDave219]

The only new information I heard is that none of this will happen until after the DTD project.

 

[Tom]

The only new information I heard is that none of this will happen until after the DTD project.

I believe that.

As we all know, it's far more important to invest in new sources of revenue than to upkeep or add to the world's most famous and beloved theme parks.

 

[PhotoDave219]

I believe that.

As we all know, it's far more important to invest in new sources of revenue than to upkeep or add to the world's most famous and beloved theme parks.

Im just reitterating what management told cast.

 

[Tom]

Im just reitterating what management told cast.

I know. I agree with what you heard, and believe that it's easily true. My sarcasm was directed at TDO, not you