Disneyland quietly trims its new eastside parking garage, but adds more EV chargers
Disneyland revised plans for its new eastside parking garage, cutting one level while increasing EV charging and keeping the transit hub project moving.
Disneyland has revised one of the biggest pieces of its next wave of resort infrastructure. New permits filed with the City of Anaheim scale back the size of the resort’s eastside parking garage, while also increasing the number of electric vehicle charging stations planned for the project.
The change affects the new eastside parking structure already under construction on a former employee parking lot. Revised building permits submitted to Anaheim, as noted by Theme Park IQ, reduce the garage from eight levels to seven. The overall structure is now planned at about 3.1 million square feet, roughly 4% smaller than earlier plans.
Even with the reduced footprint, some features are growing. The updated plans call for 316 electric vehicle charging stations, about 5% more than previously submitted. The garage will also include 18 shade canopies covering 14,000 square feet.
The project is part of DisneylandForward, the resort’s $1.9 billion expansion effort. Construction on the eastside parking structure and transportation hub began in August. Along with parking, the hub is set to include shuttle bus service and a ride share drop-off and pick-up area.
For guests, the project is tied to a larger shift in how people arrive at the resort. The new seven-level garage and transit hub on the east side of the property will move the current Disneyland bus drop-off and pick-up zone on Harbor Boulevard to Disney’s former Manchester employee parking lot near the I-5 Freeway. A pedestrian bridge is also planned to connect the new structure east of Harbor Boulevard with Disneyland and Disney California Adventure on the west side of the street.
Disneyland has not announced an opening date. The garage is expected to be ready in time for the Avengers Campus expansion and the Los Angeles Summer Olympics in 2028.
The structure is meant to help handle the additional visitors Disneyland expects over the next five years, including guests coming for the planned Avatar themed land, the Coco boat ride and a reimagined Tomorrowland. In other words, the garage may be slightly smaller than first proposed, but it remains a major piece of how Disneyland plans to absorb future growth.
