The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has given Walt Disney World permission for a mobile crane to construct a 10-story hotel near Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground.
Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge Resurrected?
The FAA permit is titled “CSI Mobile Cranes” and includes GPS coordinates that coincide with the DVC hotel Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge. The resort was announced in 2018 and set for the former River Country site. After the abandoned water park was demolished in 2019, work was just beginning on Reflections when COVID-19 shut down all construction. With little visible work on the resort, Disney removing all reference to it from its websites, and a 2021 permit for trailer removal, it was thought the resort was canceled.
However, this latest permit confirms that the construction of a hotel is still planned. The permit’s “Description of Proposal” states it’s for:
Construction of mobile cranes to construct a 10-story hotel. The mobile cranes can reach a max height of 240 ft. AGL when raised to its highest point. When idle, during non-working hours, the crane will be at a max height of 150 ft. AGL.
The work schedule for the crane is October 14, 2024, through August 14, 2025.
Other indicators that Reflections might be back on include multiple filings for construction permit extensions. The final hotel might not be named Reflections or feature the exact same theming, but this still suggests the project is progressing in some form.
Check out the original concept art of Reflection’s public spaces and hotel rooms inspired by “Bambi,” “Brother Bear,” “Fox and the Hound,” and “Pocahontas.”
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