Disney officials are hoping to clear one of the final hurdles Monday for its theme park expansion plan, which they say would jump-start at least $1.9 billion of new development at the Anaheim resort over the next 10 years.
The DisneylandForward project will face a vote Monday night from the Anaheim Planning Commission, after almost three years of reviews and analysis.
The requested changes to the park’s zoning would allow Disney — a dominant figure in Anaheim politics — more flexibility to reimagine its existing 490-acre footprint in Anaheim over the next few decades, mixing new attractions, theme parks, shops, restaurants and parking to “provide for continued, long-term growth of The Disneyland Resort,” the latest city report said.
“In the 1990s, the City of Anaheim approved specific plans that would guide the growth of Disneyland Resort and businesses in the newly formed Anaheim Resort area,” the DisneylandForward website said. “And while those plans resulted in major improvements to the entire Anaheim Resort, their ‘traditional’ district/zone approach does not allow for the diverse, integrated experiences theme park visitors now seek, severely limiting Disney’s ability to continue investing in Anaheim.”
The project doesn’t include specific plans for new attractions, but Disney officials have offered a vision for possible additions, such as immersive Frozen, Zootopia, Tron or Peter Pan experiences similar to those at Disney’s locations in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo. The project, if approved, does promise a minimum $1.9 billion investment in the theme park, lodging, entertainment, shopping and dining within a decade, according to city officials.
The city of Anaheim’s staff report on the project recommends the planning commission’s approval. If the commission agrees, the proposal would then require final approval from the City Council, likely in mid-April. Even if the new zoning is approved, individual projects would still be subject to city planning approval.
The proposal outlines an increase of 4,376 theme park-related parking spaces, as well as a variety of traffic improvements, including adding bike lanes and pedestrian bridges and absorbing some local roadways into Disney’s oversight.
The expected development by Anaheim’s largest employer would generate significantly more economic output and tax revenue, according to an analysis commissioned by the Walt Disney Co. The new agreement, if approved, would also have Disney pony up $30 million for affordable housing within five years, $40 million for street and transportation improvements and $10 million for sewer upgrades.
“The DisneylandForward Project is expected to generate additional revenue to the city that will increase the city’s general fund to be used for a wide variety of public benefits, including funding police and fire personnel and resources, local school districts, parks, libraries, and capital improvements,” according to the city’s staff report.
The project’s environmental impact report found the construction phase would have significant, unavoidable effects on noise pollution, air quality and greenhouse gas emissions in the surrounding community, but Disney officials cited mitigation measures, including installing 12-foot-tall noise barriers.
It wasn’t immediately clear how much opposition the project would see Monday night. Many nearby residents and businesses have expressed concerns throughout the lengthy review process about noise, traffic, increased crime or pollution — but there was also much support for the project at a city workshop last month.
Some have also called on Disney to invest more in the community, given the scale of this project and how many of the company’s low-wage workers struggle to make ends meet.
Duane Roberts, the editor and publisher of website Anaheim Investigator, pointed to the massive Walt Disney Co.-funded 1,400 unit affordable housing project near Disney World in Central Florida, calling the promised $30 million for affordable housing in Anaheim “puny.” He said he wasn’t necessarily opposed to the DisneylandForward project, but wanted city officials to push for more local support from Disney.
“Why are we getting so little as compared to Florida?” Roberts asked city officials last month. “Do we not, like them, have a housing crisis in this state?”
