Disney cleared a crucial hurdle today in its plan to revamp Disneyland by up to $1.9 billion over the next decade, but not without controversy.
The Anaheim City Planning Commission voted 5-1 to approve sending the company’s DisneyForward plan to the full City Council. DisneyForward will transform the original Walt Disney theme park over the coming decades, adding multi-use amenities and attractions.
Amid an initial torrent of positive public statements from union members, hotel owners, residents and Disneyland cast members, the Planning Commission appeared ready to move forward with the deal. But a flurry of good public commenters against the project and occasional rambling questions from Commissioner Luisandres Perez pushed the meeting into its sixth hour before a final vote was taken.
Disney hopes the project will soon be reviewed by the Anaheim City Council and receive approval before the end of 2024.
DisneylandForward was first introduced in 2021, and in 2023 Disney executives revealed new details about the project, including a Disney-sponsored economic study from Cal State Fullerton that estimates that for every $1 billion Disney invests to modernize and renovate the resort, there are more job. $1.1 billion in economic output will be generated during the four-year construction period. After that, according to… Los Angeles TimesThis investment is expected to generate $253 million annually in economic output, $15 million in tax revenues and 2,292 job opportunities.
Today, Disney expects even higher job numbers, with 8,960 jobs created during construction and 4,584 added during operations.
The development agreement will run through 2064. It is estimated that Disney will end up spending $2.5 billion when the work is completed.
Last September, Anaheim released a 17,000-page environmental impact report for Disney’s proposed Disneyland Forward expansion. There was good and bad in the forecast. The report claims that the expansion would significantly impact air quality, greenhouse gas emissions and noise, but would have a minimal impact on transportation and neighborhood aesthetics. Since then a number of public meetings have been held on the subject.
Disney, specifically, is looking for Anaheim officials to ease zoning restrictions in the city’s 1994 “Resort Special Plan” for the area in and around Disneyland.
DisneylandForward asserts, “…while these plans have resulted in significant improvements to the entire Anaheim Resort, their “traditional” area/region approach does not allow for the diverse, well-rounded experiences that theme park visitors now seek, severely limiting Disney’s ability to Continue to invest in Anaheim.”
The website emphasizes that what the resort needs is flexibility.
“Today, hotels, theme parks, retail and dining are all part of one immersive experience. Guests expect that the future of entertainment will seamlessly weave all uses together in ways that would have been difficult to imagine more than 25 years ago when the city developed these specific plans.”
In exchange for the concession, Disney will guarantee the city $30 million for affordable housing, $8 million for parks, and $35 million for nearby road improvements.
What are Disney’s plans in the region?
“With DisneylandForward and more flexibility within our existing properties, new lands and adventures like those underway at Tokyo DisneySea and Shanghai Disneyland can inspire new experiences here,” reads the copy on DisneylandForward.com. The examples provided are Frozen Earth and tangled And Peter Pan Attractions of the original park and Zootopia, You see And toy story Disney California Adventure elements. But these are just examples. Disney brass haven’t committed to any, though Disney CEO Bob Iger recently confirmed that a new attraction is based on symbol picture The franchise will be coming to Disneyland soon.
At a City Planning Commission meeting, Ken Potrock, president of the Disneyland Resort, said the company wants to build “integrated experiences,” and although he did not commit to that, he identified three existing attractions as examples: Zootopia in Shanghai, and Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland , and Star Wars. (Galaxy Edge in Anaheim).
But where will these new attractions go, whatever they may be? Artists’ renderings of the plans presented by Disney, though conceptual, show a major development to the west of the existing parks near the Disneyland Hotel and another to the southeast of California Adventure. Both lots are currently zoned for parking. See pictures below.
An artist’s rendering of the proposed development along the west side of the resort’s parks between the Disneyland Hotel and the Disney Paradise Hotel. (disneylandforward.com)
An artist’s rendering of the proposed development next to the southeast corner of Disney California Adventure in what is now the Toy Story parking area. (disneylandforward.com)
Bruce Haring contributed to this report.