Disney has filed a new application with the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) for a project called the NSA Dock Expansion.
The filing covers work at the North Service Area Marina, the working marina at the northern end of Bay Lake used to store and service Disney's fleet of watercraft.
It's a backstage project, so guests won't see it. But it's worth a look at what Disney is planning for its marina operations behind the scenes.
The application, submitted by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, U.S., Inc., covers 0.89 acres at the North Service Area, east of Facilities Way. The project summary describes it simply: new docks at the North Service Area Marina, with no water quality or attenuation impacts expected.
Plans filed with the permit show the scope of the work:
- A 20-foot floating dock extension with a relocated pile
- A new floating dock addition with 40-foot fingers
- Total dock area growing from about 3,400 square feet to about 4,800 square feet
- Nine existing pilings replaced, four relocated, and eight new pilings added
- Dredging to a depth of 86.5 feet (Disney datum), removing about 718 cubic yards of material
The plans list a vessel count of six 66-foot cruisers and six 38-foot launches, giving a sense of the size of boats the marina handles.
The site plan calls for dredging along the marina's outer edge to reach the required depth for the docked vessels. A floating turbidity barrier, anchored to land, will run along the limits of work during construction to control erosion and keep sediment contained during dredging.
Compensating storage for the volume displaced by the new piles will come from an existing surplus, so the project isn't expected to affect water quantity in Bay Lake.
The Marina Dock Expansion is the third watercraft-related project Disney has in motion right now. Disney is also adding a fourth ferry boat to the Magic Kingdom fleet, the first new boat since 1976. The vessel, named the Meg Gilbert Crofton after Walt Disney World's fourth president, is under construction at a Florida marina. Assembly, painting, and final fit-out will take about a year, with a launch planned sometime in 2027.
Alongside the new boat, Disney has an approved SFWMD permit for a queue expansion at the existing Seven Seas Lagoon ferry docks at Magic Kingdom. That project points to Disney preparing dock infrastructure for higher guest volume as the park moves through its largest expansion to date with Piston Peak and Villains Land.
Taken together, the NSA Dock Expansion, the new ferry boat, and the Magic Kingdom ferry dock queue expansion suggest Disney is investing across its whole watercraft operation, from the marina that services the fleet to the boats themselves and the docks guests use.
There's no construction timeline included in the filing, and Disney hasn't commented publicly on the project.
WDWMAGIC Intelligence
Answers from our archive, with sources
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