A permit filed with the state yesterday suggests that changes are on the horizon for the Magic Kingdom parking lot. In addition to the loss of the Hidden Mickey pond that sits at the south end of the parking lot, it appears that the wooded area that separates the Simba and Scar lots will be filled in for additional parking spaces.
Hidden Mickey Pond
We’ll start with the Hidden Mickey pond. If you’ve never seen it, you’re not alone. It could only be seen well from an elevated position such as Google maps, or in the My Disney Experience app.
As you can see in the permit image below, the pond will be expanded to take up most of the green space around it to create better drainage in the area. It also looks like work will take place in the Scar lot to create drainage from the “Center Ditch” through the “South Ditch” and into the newly expanded pond.
Parking Lot Expansion
This work will free up the wooded area between the Scar and Simba lots for a parking lot expansion. As seen in the permit image below, the space is currently marked for fill/stockpile. The exact wording in the permit calls for an 11-acre expansion of the Magic Kingdom parking lot, “…provide treatment for a proposed parking expansion within the Magic Kingdom Guest Parking Lot. That expansion is a part of this permit and will remove an 11.4 acre wetland and replace that same area with a paved parking surface.”
As always, keep checking back with BlogMickey.com for the latest on this project and many more from around the Disney Parks. For more on the changes to Magic Kingdom, check out our posts on the Transportation and Ticket Center changes and Magic Kingdom main entrance changes.