New permits filed at Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Universal Studios Orlando

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Site plans Magic Kingdom Tron and theater
The site plan for the addition of the new Magic Kingdom theater and Tron Lightcycle Run.

Last week brought quite a few new permits filings for theme park attractions in the Orlando area, shedding a little light on some big projects announced by Disney and Universal earlier this year.

First, permits have been filed for the Magic Kingdom that show the area that will be the home of the Tron Lightcycle Power Run in Tomorrowland and the new theater behind Main Street. The permit blueprints, seen above, show markers for MK1 and MK2. MK1 is presumably the new theater and MK2 is Tron. I’ve superimposed those markers onto a Google satellite view to give a rough idea of where these two attractions could end up. See that photo below.

Magic Kingdom satellite view Tron and theater
A satellite view of the possible locations for the new Magic Kingdom theater and Tron Lightcylce Run.

As seen in the site survey, the construction perimeter extends over a portion of the Tomorrowland Speedway. The attraction could possibly close for some time during the construction for Tron, though it seems likely to survive in the long run.

The theater seems poised to take over the cast parking lot and other land behind the Town Square Theater and Tony’s Town Square Restaurant. I wouldn’t be surprised if the theater will be accessed via the area between Tony’s and The Chapeau, but that’s just a guess.

Also at the Disney World Resort, permits have been filed for the Ratatouille attraction coming in the next few years to Epcot’s France Pavilion. There are no surprises here. It’s going behind the current pavilion as well as in the empty pad between France and Morocco. See the plan below.

Epcot Ratatouille France plans
The site plan for the Ratatouille attraction addition for the France Pavilion at Epcot.

And last but not least, Universal Studios Orlando is moving forward with Super Mario Land. According to Chip Skambis of WFTV, Universal filed plans for the land which will be 8.8 acres and include a Mario Kart area and Donkey Kong area. The land will be behind Springfield and seems poised to take over the animal actors stage and the current KidZone. This land should be a major upgrade. Check out Chip’s tweet of the site plan below. Springfield and the waterfront is on the left and the additions fill in behind it.

Universal Studios Japan will get a Nintendo land first, scheduled to open in 2020 in time for the summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Are you excited for all of the ongoing projects in the Orlando area? There are still plenty of projects not covered here that should be coming in the next four years or so. It’s an exciting time to be an theme park fan.