Could Disney Be Making Plans to Replace IllumiNations at Epcot?
Rumors have been making the rounds for a while now that with all of the upcoming upgrades to Epcot including a new Guardians of the Galaxy-themed indoor coaster, a Ratatouille-themed ride in the World Showcase and a new space-themed eatery in Future World that Disney may also be considering a replacement to the nightly IllumiNations fireworks display. It is a notion that doesn’t seem that farfetched considering that IllumiNations has been going strong for nearly a decade.
Lending credence to the rumors is a piece that ran in the Orlando Sentinel and various Disney blogs this week highlighting that Reedy Creek Improvement District voted recently to set aside a nearly $1.8 million preliminary budget for “electrical upgrades” at the lagoon where IllumiNations is held nightly. An additional $325,000 was set aside to buy materials and $220,00 for engineering and construction.
However, specifics about what Disney will do with these funds will have to remain speculative for a while longer. According to various sources when asked to comment about replacing IllumiNations Jason Herrick, manager for planning and engineering for Reedy Creek Energy Services wasn’t able to disclose specifics on how the funds would be used, “I don’t know the details what they’re going to use it for, but that’s the request.” A spokesperson for Disney also declined to comment.
This is a story that we’ll be monitoring closely here at MickeyBlog. We hope that you’ll continue to following along with us for the latest news and updates regarding this and other exciting projects expected at Walt Disney World in the years ahead.
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Image Credit: Disney.