DisneylandForward Project Unanimously Approved by Anaheim City Council, First Step in Decades of Theme Park Development

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    The DisneylandForward rezoning plans have passed a final vote by the Anaheim City Council, paving the way for decades of development at the Disneyland Resort. DisneylandForward was approved unanimously. The plans will take effect in 30 days, at which point Disney could start development. Of course, the development will take place over the next few decades as Disney expands both Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.

    DisneylandForward approved | Bob Iger, Gavin Newsom, Josh D’Amaro
    DisneylandForward vote totals

    DisneylandForward Approved

    At a high level, the DisneylandForward project is less of a project and more of a rezoning initiative. In order to expand the Disneyland Resort theme parks and entertainment venues, Disneyland requires rezoning approval from the City of Anaheim.

    Announced on March 25th, 2021, Disney presented plans for DisneylandForward. During the announcement, the concept art below showed expansions of both Disneyland Resort theme parks across Disneyland Drive, taking over areas previously zoned for hotel use.

    Further plans (detailed in the article below) revealed how Disneyland officials wanted to connect the two theme parks to new areas south of the Pixar Pals parking garage and among the Disneyland Hotel and the Pixar Place Hotel.

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    Disneyland also plans on creating an entertainment district similar to Disney Springs in Florida. This shopping, dining, and entertainment district would take over the Toy Story Parking Area.

    The proposal also calls for additional parking east of the theme parks and potential footbridges across Harbor Boulevard and Disneyland Drive.

    The proposal does not request any new acreage, square footage, or hotel rooms to be developed. Instead, it would shift already approved development amounts across land Disney owns.

    Early plans call for more than a dozen attractions as part of the DisneylandForward project. Of course, Disney has not announced a single attraction for the expansion area shown below. Instead, they point to recent expansions made in international theme parks as examples of what the company is capable of.

    One project that Disney says is tied to DisneylandForward approval is an Avatar-themed expansion, likely at Disney California Adventure. It’s likely that the Avatar-themed project, seen in concept art, below requires transportation updates in order to fit into the DCA footprint.

    Ken Potrock, President of the Disneyland Resort, has called the DisneylandForward project a “legacy project” for both Disneyland and the City of Anaheim. Potrock has said that Disneyland is ready to start building right away and said that he wants Disneyland to get “more than its fair share” of the $60 billion figure that Disney has said it will spend across theme parks around the world.

    As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!

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