For many years, there has been a developed area of Walt Disney World that hasn’t actually had any action or anything done with it, but that is about to change. River Country is a water park that guests enjoyed for more than 20 years, but it closed in 2002 and has sat dormant ever since. Now, Disney has finally filed permits to do something with the area near Fort Wilderness , but the project still has a lot of mystery surrounding it.
The old water park opening in the summer of 1976 and mixed fresh-water fun with that of the beach and waters of Bay Lake. On September 1, 2002, the park officially closed down for good and it has left to pretty much deteriorate with no official word on if anything would ever be done.
Well, that is all about to change.
On March 5, 2018, Disney filed permits for a mystery development that is labeled as “Project 89” and it is for the area near the Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground, according to WDW Magic . There is not a lot of detail as to what is actually taking place, but the permits do detail “geotechnical borings” which are done to see if the land is able to undergo serious construction.
BREAKING: Walt Disney World Planning New Development, Possible Hotel for the River Country Water Park Site https://t.co/F3YN2timeR pic.twitter.com/9r75yRle3e
— WDW News Today (@WDWNT) March 6, 2018
Looking at the permits, it’s hard to figure out what this project could be, but it does appear to be what could be a resort of some sort.
Walt Disney World does currently have the Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground on one side of the old River Country site. Not far away on the opposite side is Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Resort which has recently seen an expansion that has brought in new cabins.
As expansion work continues around WDW with parks putting in new lands and attractions, Disney is expecting even more guests. That would mean they need to have places for them to stay and a few new hotels/resorts aren’t out of the question.
Right now, there is so much going on at Walt Disney World and additional things are rumored with a possible new resort near the entrance of Epcot . While many guests always wonder why Disney has to get rid of things to build new ones, they may finally be happy that something old is getting some love. The mystery project permits filed for River Country’s old site are shrouded in mystery, but something is finally happening.