Parking. It seems that parking has always been an issue at Disneyland and having an adequate supply has been critical to the success of the park. Now, once again, parking has become an issue. Some say that the recent changes in the annual passholder prices and parking policies is one way Disney is battling a losing battle with its parking inventory.

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Of course, I like looking to the past to see how we got to today. In The Disneyland Story: The Unofficial Guide to the Evolution of Walt Disney’s Dream, I recant the struggle.

As early as 1991 Disney had proposed building new parking structures as part of an ambitious, massive expansion including Westcot, a second theme park, new hotels, and a new entertainment/retail district:

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The parking structures and the circulation enhancements were critical to the success of the entire expansion project. Disney lobbied for federal funding for a $395 million highway project that would include freeway off-ramps leading directly into the resort’s parking garages. The company suggested it could be considered a “demonstration project” in order to bypass the state government planning process. Part of the program was to design a citywide PeopleMover system but only build the first leg on Disney property, with no commitment to build the rest of the network. Existing parking capacity was only 14,000 vehicles.

The new west parking structure would be six levels and hold 16,700 vehicles. The east structure would be even larger, with seven levels capable of holding 17,600 vehicles. Both would be accessed by dedicated freeway off-ramps. The Anaheim Bulletin had always been bullish on Disneyland, but even they felt that this request was an injustice. In an editorial published in July, they stated, ‘We find the whole thing offensive, especially that a giant corporation like Disney, who will later charge us admission to their park, wants us to help pay for its construction.’ The Los Angeles Times came out against Disney. They said, ‘Part of the problem is timing,’ and ‘the result is that Disney’s request looks outsized; and its strategy of proposing a Disney-originated plan allowed critics to argue that little direct public benefit would result.’ A U.S. Senate subcommittee rejected Disney’s bid for federal money to pay for the parking lot. The Anaheim Bulletin concluded, ‘The Disney Company has finally gotten its comeuppance.’”

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However:

“In the planning process Disney needed to acquire 15 properties to build a large parking structure. They were able to purchase seven of the properties but had suggested to the holdouts that they would force the City to use their power of eminent domain if necessary. Some longtime property owners did not take this threat lightly. One of the holdouts was Odetics, a high-tech recording-equipment manufacturer. The company had been on its 14-acre site since 1969 . Chairman of Odetics, Joel Slotzky, was not pleased when he heard the news that Disney planned to take his land. He said, ‘The only notice we got was a phone call from someone at Disney a few hours before the announcement. Nobody at the city informed us about this. We looked at the newspaper this morning and said, ‘Hey, that’s us.’ ” He added, ‘We’re not happy campers.’ Odetics fought against the project and succeeded in being excluded from the property consolidation.

Another holdout was Hiroshi Fujishige. His family had purchased 58 acres near Katella Avenue and Harbor Boulevard in 1953. Anaheim had wanted to buy his strawberry farm since the development of the Convention Center back in the 1960s. Some say that Fujishige was holding out for more money. He said, ‘It’s too big for me to comprehend. If I had more schooling and knew what all these deals were, I might have been out of here a long time ago. At this time and age, you’ve got to keep doing what you know best.’ One close friend said, ‘He has an Oriental Omniscience about him. Some say he’s crazy watching his strawberries grow. I think he knows something we don’t know.’

The pressure to sell over the years was a contributing factor to the suicide of Fujishige’s brother in 1986. Fujishige said, “This land means quite a bit to me. My brother died for it.” In 1991, a planning document showed the Fujishige farm as a potential site for a third Disney theme park. The family sued . At the time, Carolyn Fujishige wrote the city, “We will never sell our property to the Disney Company or to anyone affiliated in any way with the Disney Company.” It would not be until August 1998 that the company would be able to take control of the property. Newspaper reports suggested the purchase price was somewhere between $ 65 million and $ 78 million for 52.5 acres. The family intended to farm the remaining 3.5 acres. On March, 29, 2010, the property became the Toy Story Parking Lot.”

Then in 1995:

The Walt Disney Company walked away from options to purchase six parcels of land, including 10 acres at Harbor Boulevard and Freedman Way where Melodyland stood. This was the site where they had planned to build a 12,000-space parking structure and transportation center. Disney officials met with the City to explain why they were not renewing those options; Malmuth recounted, “We concluded that, at today’s land prices these options just were not economic. It did not make sense given the price.” According to Disneyland President Paul Pressler, “What we had originally envisioned was a very large resort. What we are looking at today is the ability to break it into component parts and build on it.” He added, ‘We are going to build a second gate, absolutely.’”

Then the Mickey and Friends structure opened:

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Another change at Disneyland in 2000 was more parking. Starting on July 24, guests arriving in their own cars were now directed to park in the seven-story, 10,250-car Mickey and Friends Parking structure at the northeast corner of Disney’s property. The structure cost $ 90 million; it was financed by Anaheim hotel taxes and had been built by the city. Disney leased back the garage and pocketed any revenues. Parking in the structure was handled differently than in the typical parking structure; the new approach was based on the concept of speed parking. Michael Eisner was quite excited about speed parking; and in a Los Angeles Times interview, he even claimed credit for it. Guests paid a fee and then drove to the top of the ramp, where cast members guided them to specific parking spaces. All spaces faced the same direction, so exiting simply meant driving forward and going back down one ramp. The driver did not need to change ramps and did not need to back up into traffic to exit. It did not work. In practice, the park found that guests had to walk toward incoming traffic. The facility was closed down and re-striped for traditional parking.

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Right now, a study is being prepared to reimagine the transportation network in the region again. The project is known as the Anaheim Rapid Connection (ARC) Fixed-Guideway Project and it will create a streetcar system connecting Disneyland, Gardenwalk, new housing in the Platnium Triangle, Angel Stadium, the Honda Center, and the recently opened ARTIC terminal. With the trend for Millennial’s to drive less and use public transportation can Disneyland find a better answer?

What are your thoughts on parking and the growth potential of the Disneyland Resort?

 

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Sam Gennawey
Sam Gennawey is an urban planner who has collaborated with communities throughout California over the course of more than 100 projects to create a great, big, beautiful tomorrow. Sam is a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Regional Planning History Group, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving municipal, county, and private sector planning documents from throughout Los Angeles County. Sam is the author of Walt and the Promise of Progress City which you can find on Amazon.