Universal Orlando Resort Expansion (Part 1)

[La2kw]

you mean WDW does, DL has parking garages

Disneyland still has a number of surface parking lots in addition to the parking structure. Toy Story lot, Downtown Disney lot, Pumbaa lot, and surface lots at all 3 hotels.

 

[shiekra38]

Based on this map, I've made some measurements on Google Earth overlay:
CityWalk (current at UOR): Around 20 acres
CityWalk (as on pred. map): 14 acres

Park (as on pred. map + backstage): around 130 acres
IOA: 100 acres
USF: 85 acres
VB: 32 acres (with 5 acre expansion)

Parking lot (as on road map): 67 acres
Parking garages (one): 15 acres

South hotel (beneath road, above Universal Blvd.): 93 acres
Sapphire Falls: 21 acres
Aventura: 5 acres
Cabana Bay: 38 acres

Hope this helped.

Wait...IOA is bigger than USF? Mind blown

 

[paintervision]

I think this thread is a little too fixated on surface lots versus garages. Keep in mind that surface parking is easily moved, plus who know what the demands will be once driverless vehicles come into play. Perhaps a kind of “off-site parking” will be all that’s needed, and guests will have some kind of self-service valet area. Then all that infrastructure for parking could be elsewhere, moved off to what is currently less valuable land. Maybe that sounds like science fiction, but it could happen in a few years. Parking is not the priority yet. I’m more concerned with the new park.

 

[Mad Dog]

On USF it depends on whether the Sound Stages used for events like HHN and the parade/ HHN sprung tents areas are included. That will generally increase the acreage over 100 acres....semantics matter

 

[tidecat]

I think this thread is a little too fixated on surface lots versus garages. Keep in mind that surface parking is easily moved, plus who know what the demands will be once driverless vehicles come into play. Perhaps a kind of “off-site parking” will be all that’s needed, and guests will have some kind of self-service valet area. Then all that infrastructure for parking could be elsewhere, moved off to what is currently less valuable land. Maybe that sounds like science fiction, but it could happen in a few years. Parking is not the priority yet. I’m more concerned with the new park.

We may also see Uni tip their hand on expanded shuttle service from MCO, and perhaps an Uber-like service (like Disney’s “Minnie Van”) between the original resort, Endless Summer, and the new property. Uni probably doesn’t want to add too many cars to I-Drive and the surrounding area if it can be helped.

 

[AlexanderMBush]

 

[Brian G.]

Just a reminder -

This thread is for factual news, where actual information and details are discussed.

The other thread is for dreaming up and speculating about what the expansion could entail, and what properties could make their way to any new park.

 

[Magic-Man]

Theory time: The CityWalk (or whatever it will be called) will not be connected to the parking lot/theme park. It'll be placed on the other side of the road, with a separate parking garage and pedestrian bridges/crosswalks connecting it to the new park.

 

[RFRees]

*Crosses fingers, hoping that the futurist predictions regarding self driving cars eliminating the need for parking garages are true.*

Seriously though, it's a possiblity that self driving by 2035 could be practical, affordable, and ubiquitous.

If they built a garage in 2035 (give or take), that garage would need to be useful for how many years for it to "pay off"? If in almost twenty years, self driving is not yet 100% here but at 50-75%, how big would Universal want the garage to be? Would they even want to build one knowing it may only be useful for another 5-10 years?

I know this is planning very far out (not just 20 but 30 years) but that's the point. This is a business decision now... With the idea of "who knows where we'll be" in the future. If it was my money, I'd take the safe route with a parking lot, not garage.

(Please note, I'm speaking of full, self driving, not just driver assist.)

 

[Legacy]

He literally just posted that this thread is for facts, not ideas/theories.

 

[Disneyhead]

I think that for Phase 1, a surface lot makes the most sense. It reduces CapEx in the near term.

Everyone seems very concerned about redevelopment costs down the road, how hard is it to rip down a toll booth and tear up some asphalt? I think it's a lot of hand wringing over nothing.

Here is how I think it will play out.

Phase 1: 1 dry park, CityWalk 2.0, 2 hotels.
Phase 2: 1 water park, 1 hotel
Phase 3: 2nd dry park, 2 hotels, Parking Garage

 

[JungleSkip]

Everyone seems very concerned about redevelopment costs down the road, how hard is it to rip down a toll booth and tear up some asphalt? I think it's a lot of hand wringing over nothing.

Ehhhh. I think it's more that they will need to completely reconfigure the road system since the garages will more than likely have to go on the other side of the road.

Here's another small worry I have about how this is all getting laid out...I'm worried there's not a ton of room for resort-like hotels, and we're gonna end up with just a lot of tower resorts. I hope that's not the case.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

I have no problem with a surface parking lot, my problem is how they laid out the area. Sure they can rip it all apart in the future at no cost, but why not just lay out the roads with the future in mind? I do think, however, that with the current plans they have it leads me to believe that the garages would either be between both parks OR across the road next to those apartments.

 

[Disneyhead]

Ehhhh. I think it's more that they will need to completely reconfigure the road system since the garages will more than likely have to go on the other side of the road.

Here's another small worry I have about how this is all getting laid out...I'm worried there's not a ton of room for resort-like hotels, and we're gonna end up with just a lot of tower resorts. I hope that's not the case.

I think they know where the garages will be, and are building the road system accordingly. If you look at the turn out that leads to the new surface lot, it looks like there is the beginnings of a turn out directly across the road from the entrance to the surface lot. My guess is that it will eventually lead to new garages.

 

[s8film40]

I think it's more that they will need to completely reconfigure the road system since the garages will more than likely have to go on the other side of the road.

A right turn versus a left turn doesn't seem like a big change to me. That big circle intersection thing essentially dumps all the traffic on the road from there the traffic turns into the lot, if it needed to turn the other way to a garage I would think they would only need to change some lines and turn lanes. It actually when you look at it that way seems like they planned ahead to make it somewhat flexible.

 

[zg44]

Ehhhh. I think it's more that they will need to completely reconfigure the road system since the garages will more than likely have to go on the other side of the road.

Here's another small worry I have about how this is all getting laid out...I'm worried there's not a ton of room for resort-like hotels, and we're gonna end up with just a lot of tower resorts. I hope that's not the case.

Well, the good about Comcast is that they're all in on building out UOR to rival WDW, and all the good that comes with that.

But Comcast is all about profit maximization; if you asked them if they'd ever build another Portofino Bay, they'd laugh probably.

Now that doesn't mean we won't get another premier or more horizontal hotel, but it'd be much closer to Hard Rock's 650 rooms on 15 acres than Portofino Bay's 750 rooms on 30 acres. There's going to have to be some towers if they're going to hit around 5000 hotel rooms on this property.


This is also why I'm hoping that they grab those 2 parcels on Universal Blvd so they can put the value hotels there with another 6000 rooms west of the Kirkman extension. There really isn't space on the main property for more than 5000 rooms if you want some larger resorts (and not just towers).

 

[JungleSkip]

Well, the good about Comcast is that they're all in on building out UOR to rival WDW, and all the good that comes with that.

But Comcast is all about profit maximization; if you asked them if they'd ever build another Portofino Bay, they'd laugh probably.

Now that doesn't mean we won't get another premier hotel, but it'd be much closer to Hard Rock's 650 rooms on 15 acres than Portofino Bay's 750 rooms on 30 acres. There's going to have to be some towers if they're going to hit around 5000 hotel rooms on this property.


This is also why I'm hoping that they grab those 2 parcels on Universal Blvd so they can put the value hotels there with another 6000 rooms west of the Kirkman extension. There really isn't space on the main property for more than 5000 rooms if you want some larger resorts (and not just towers).

I guess I'm okay with some towers, but I was hoping for more places with a real theme on the new land.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Well, the good about Comcast is that they're all in on building out UOR to rival WDW, and all the good that comes with that.

But Comcast is all about profit maximization; if you asked them if they'd ever build another Portofino Bay, they'd laugh probably.

Now that doesn't mean we won't get another premier hotel, but it'd be much closer to Hard Rock's 650 rooms on 15 acres than Portofino Bay's 750 rooms on 30 acres. There's going to have to be some towers if they're going to hit around 5000 hotel rooms on this property.


This is also why I'm hoping that they grab those 2 parcels on Universal Blvd so they can put the value hotels there with another 6000 rooms west of the Kirkman extension. There really isn't space on the main property for more than 5000 rooms if you want some larger resorts (and not just towers).

Which is why it is in their best interest to have a hotel located at the park's entrance.

I expect that hotel to cost more than Portofino. The rest of the resort's will be Sapphire Falls like (moderates) and a bunch of "Premier Value" hotels like Cabana/Aventura.

 

[zg44]

I guess I'm okay with some towers, but I was hoping for more places with a real theme on the new land.

Which is why it is in their best interest to have a hotel located at the park's entrance.

I expect that hotel to cost more than Portofino. The rest of the resort's will be Sapphire Falls like (moderates) and a bunch of "Premier Value" hotels like Cabana/Aventura.

Yeah, I expect there to be one very high end hotel right there at the entrance to park #3/CW; probably around 800-1000 rooms across 20 acres; those will probably end up being the most expensive rooms that Universal offers in Orlando over time.


The next 3 hotels would look similar to what UOR has: 2 moderate hotels like Sapphire Falls/Royal Pacific of around 1000 rooms across 20ish acres each, and one giant premier value hotel of 2000+ rooms spread over 40 acres that's near the water park (i.e. like Cabana Bay vis-a-vis Volcano Bay).


Those first 4 hotels take up around 100 acres; after that I'd imagine the rest is Aventura-like towers to get the room count as high as possible... 100 rooms per acre on small plots of 6-7 acres.

 

[shiekra38]

Ehhhh. I think it's more that they will need to completely reconfigure the road system since the garages will more than likely have to go on the other side of the road.

Here's another small worry I have about how this is all getting laid out...I'm worried there's not a ton of room for resort-like hotels, and we're gonna end up with just a lot of tower resorts. I hope that's not the case.

I hope not...Also, I don't remember typing that haha

Hopefully there are no more Aventura-like resorts coming...I get that building vertical helps with more rooms