Universal Starting Zoning Process for Recently Acquired Orlando Land

It is no secret that the Universal Orlando Resort, owned by parent company Comcast, has been on an expansion streak in recent years - and to that end last December they purchased about 475 acres of land near their current operations.  Granted it didn't take a genius to figure that there are probably early plans in the works for future growth that will include new theme park(s) and more.

Now the company has started the process of getting their new land purchase zoned for just that, as revealed in a recent filing with the Orange County Planning Office.

This new plan includes creating a new Universal Studios Sub-District 8 that includes special zoning for theme park use.  The new zone is listed on the map above in dark purple with the number 8.  (light purple toward the bottom of the map is SeaWorld) The bulk of the land is in one large block, where we would assume that a new theme park or parks would be built, though there is little doubt that more hotel resorts will also be a part of this.

That may be even more evident in the two additional areas to the left with number 8s on them, connected to the big area by a "transportation connection."  While another Hogwarts Express system would be neat, I would figure that this more practical connection might link stand alone resorts to the area.

Just for size comparison purposes here is a look at the new land compared to the existing Universal Orlando Resort.  The existing area is outlined in red - two theme parks, two large parking garages, a (soon to be) water park, entertainment district and five resorts are packed in there.  So when you compare that to the new land, in orange, you can really see that this is no small expansion that we're talking about.

One can only imagine what will eventually fill this area at this time, but I have no doubt that Universal will be pretty cutting edge to differentiate themselves even further from the competition.  I'm looking forward to it!