The future of Disneyland Resort includes ambitious new attractions opening in the next few years and grand expansion plans in the coming decades. Due to the limited space available at Disneyland and the government approval required for major developments, Disney must be strategic in every move. The most impactful of its expansion plans to shift the layout of the resort necessitates careful, step-by-step shifts, and the first of these is finally about to take effect.
The first step toward Disneyland Resort’s expansion reached a major milestone as Disney prepares for the next generation of theme park guests. We have details on what’s happening and the timeline for these changes. Mickey Visit brings you the latest Disney news and planning resources, including tips for rope drop at Disneyland and a sneak peek at Disney’s first Lion King ride.
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Disneyland Prepares for Expansion With Major Milestone
Changes at Disneyland Resort in the years to come will pave the way for what could be the most significant transformation in its history. Some have even suggested they could use zoned land for a third theme park in Anaheim. Let’s dive into the context of these developments, which culminates in exciting news on their imminent first step.
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In the near term, construction is already underway on three new rides at Disney California Adventure: Avengers Infinity Defense, Stark Flight Lab, and a Coco boat ride. These will all expand the park’s footprint into areas that were previously backstage spaces.
Separate from those additions, Disney management has been working toward an initiative that during the rezoning phase was called DisneylandForward. For many years, Disney was restricted by zoning in how it could legally develop some of the property it owned within Disneyland Resort, particularly parking lots. Approved by the city of Anaheim in 2024, DisneylandForward was a rezoning initiative that reallocates Disney-owned property for theme park, hotel, or shopping district use.
The significance of DisneylandForward’s approval cannot be overstated. The previous Disneyland President told us that DisneylandForward unlocked the potential of the resort’s next 30-40 years.
While many of Disney’s intentions for DisneylandForward remain unannounced, if they’re even solidified at all, the soonest theme park area to open as a direct result of DisneylandForward will be a new land based on Avatar at Disney California Adventure. The land will feature a high-tech boat ride.
This new Avatar land will replace a portion of Disney California Adventure’s Hollywoodland, including the Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! ride and the Hollywood Lounge snack location. It will also extend the boundaries of Disney California Adventure into what is currently the Disneyland Resort transportation hub, home to drop-offs and pick-ups for buses servicing nearby parking lots, as well as rideshares.
Naturally, Disney still needs a transportation hub, so before construction commences on Avatar, several other major projects need to happen. To see the full picture, we need to work backward.
Rather than simply building a new transportation hub, Disney is reimagining the entire entrance experience for guests arriving at Disneyland from the east side. A new parking structure will be built with 6,000 parking spaces, security screening, and rideshare areas. The parking structure will be 3,257,394 square feet with 8 levels.
A new skybridge will traverse across Harbor Boulevard from the new parking structure to the Esplanade, providing smooth access to the front gates of Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure.
The new parking structure and bridge will be located on a parcel of land that currently includes a cast member parking lot on South Manchester Avenue and an administrative building known as Team Disney Anaheim East, as well as a plot that was formerly home to the Carousel Inn, which Disney purchased and bulldozed several years ago.
Before construction begins on the new parking structure and skybridge, cast members need to vacate the existing parking lot and administrative building.
This brings us to today’s milestone in this exciting journey toward Disneyland Resort’s expansion.
Disney notified cast members that the South Manchester Avenue cast member parking lot will close starting June 28.
This date was shared by the Workers United Local 50 union and reported first by WDWNT after we credibly heard that it would close to cast members this summer. The union also shared that cast members will be diverted to the following parking lots: Katella Cast Member Lot (KCML), Harbor Cast Member Lot (HCML), and Ball Cast Member Lot (BMCL)
Additionally, Disney filed a permit with the city of Anaheim on June 9, 2026, for the demolition of the 70,732-square-foot Team Disney Anaheim East administrative building. This permit will allow work to move forward immediately.
A Disneyland official confirmed with us directly at Mickey Visit that they be making ongoing adjustments to backstage facilities and cast member parking to prepare for future construction.
We heard rumblings that this closure was about to happen, and these recent developments indicate things are moving full speed ahead.
While this news doesn’t directly affect guests for now, all of these backstage shifts will ultimately make way for what we consider to be the biggest impact in Disneyland’s expansion plans announced so far. This new parking structure will unlock the capacity to comfortably fit all of the cars coming to Disneyland and more people for additional theme park capacity.
Here’s an aerial look at the plans for the structure and drop off area.
The recent updates follow previous permits filed in 2025 for the future parking structure’s fencing and 302 EV chargers.
We will be actively looking in on the construction of the project from one of our favorite Disneyland hotels, the Element by Marriott. When the new structure opens, this hotel and a couple others over here will benefit from the easier access to security gate and cut through to the entrance of the parks.
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Disney previously shared that construction for the parking structure would begin in fall 2026, so the timeline for the closures of the existing parking lot and office building makes sense in relation to any site prep work that may be required to meet that autumn starting point.
As another hint of Disney’s timeline, Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! will permanently close in early 2027.
This may indicate when we can expect to see demolition begin for that area of Disney California Adventure’s Hollywoodland and the existing transportation hub nearby, depending on how long it takes Disney to build the new parking structure and bridge.
All of this work definitely places the future Avatar land at Disney California Adventure at least a few years away from opening. Mickey Visit predicts the Avatar land will open in 2030 or 2031.
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