Disney Makes Massive Land Purchase for New Park, Not in Florida

Back when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the Walt Disney Company were fighting, reports started circulating that Disney was considering moving Walt Disney World to another state. Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley even offered Disney World her home state for its next park. Texas judges and North Carolina lawmakers even tried to lure Disney away from Central Florida.

Related: With Their Feud Seemingly Over, DeSantis Encourages Disney to Build a Fifth Gate

But everyone knew that picking up the Walt Disney World Resort and moving it was just not possible. It is not a traveling circus; it is a multi-billion investment that cannot just relocate on a whim.

Disney CEO Bob Iger and Florida Gov Ron DeSantis have found some common ground. The impossible rumors and dreams of Disney fans of Disney World moving to their state have slowly died away. However, even though we all know that moving Walt Disney World is impossible, the idea of Disney building a park in another state is still a possibility.

With Universal Studios making the jump to Texas and rumors swirling that it might be opening a park in Las Vegas, it was only logical to think that Disney might be the next theme park company to expand its brand to new areas of the country.

A report surfaced that Disney just purchased land in the Colorado Rockies to create a new theme park and ski resort area. The report said that Disney purchased land that belonged to Vail Resorts Inc in Colorado with huge plans to create a new family destination complete with a theme park.

Disney’s Ski Resort

This isn’t the first time that Walt Disney and his company considered building a ski resort. In 1965, Walt Disney started working on an idea for a ski resort in Northern California. At the time, Walt had a lot of balls in the air. He was working on his “Florida Project,” which would eventually become the Walt Disney World Resort in Central Florida. He was also fleshing out the idea for his Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT).

But this was a passion project for Walt. The National Forest Service called for private businesses to submit proposals for a ski resort in the Mineral King Valley. At the time, Sequoia National Park surrounded the Mineral King Valley on three sides, but it was not yet a part of the park. When the Sequoia was created, there were still mining claims in the Valley, and it could not be included as a part of the original National Park.

Related: Walt Disney, The Sierra Club, and the Supreme Court. How Walt Disney Helped Create the Modern Environmental Movement

Walt’s proposal was for a five-story hotel with 1,030 rooms. It would include four miles of ski trails and an ice rink. For summer activities, he included a golf course and tennis courts. The plan for the hotel was to make it appear like you were transported to the Swiss Alps. Walt called it “American Alpine Wonderland.”

The total cost of Walt’s idea was $35 million, but the Walt Disney Company projected that the project would make $600 million in revenue in the first decade.

But shortly after Walt Disney started building his ski resort, he passed away, killing the plans for Disney’s ski resort.

The Reality

Dashing the hopes of Disney fans, this was just an elaborate April Fool’s Prank. Unofficial Network put out this story with a small mention at the bottom that this story wasn’t real.

Disney fans will now have to wait for Disneyland’s Disneyland Forward project and any new projects coming to the Walt Disney World Resorts.

What do you think of online sites doing these types of cruel April Fool’s Jokes that build up the hopes of Disney fans? Let us know in the comments.

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