Pleasure Island to be Revamped?

New details are coming out from Disney just days after dramatic evidence from Universal’s  shows just how important it is for our theme parks to keep offering new attractions.

Universal Orlando has just posted their best quarterly results in the resort’s 20 year history, fueled by the power of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Attendance alone for the resort’s two theme parks soared upwards by 36% for the third quarter, going up to 3.7 million guests from 2.7 million in the third quarter 2009. If that wasn’t serious enough, revenue surged ahead by 62% to $364 million, allowing the operating profit to over double compared to last year.

So, it appears that Disney imagineers are attempting to breath life back into Pleasure Island. The buildings that once housed the adult-oriented clubs at Pleasure Island have sat empty for the last two years, but some small details of what’s coming can be found in a couple of building permits.

Disney this week filed a pair of permits signaling the start of new construction at Pleasure Island, a once-popular dining-and-dancing spot that has since become little more than a cut-through between the two retail ends of Downtown Disney.  The permits suggest that at least two old Pleasure Island venues, BET Soundstage and Adventurers Club, will be razed completely.

What’s more, Disney World President Meg Crofton last week publicly hinted that changes were imminent. In a ceremony honoring new Disney World ambassadors, Crofton listed the “reimagining of Downtown Disney” among a list of current construction projects at the resort, along with the Fantasyland expansion at the Magic Kingdom and a new hotel dubbed Disney’s Art of Animation Resort.

Currently, Disney has dressed up the area around the several vacant buildings with a giant Mickey Mouse pumpkin, but it’s hard to tell from documents what is planned and Disney will only officially say, “more shopping and dining establishments.”

Pleasure Island opened in May 1989. Disney completed some big renovations in 2006, but in September of 2008, they shut down all the night clubs to make the island more family oriented. Since the clubs closed on Sept. 27, 2008, the only notable new venue to be added at Pleasure Island is Paradiso 37, a Mexican and South American restaurant that opened in June 2009.

Disney has said in the past that it expects to complete its redevelopment of Pleasure Island by 2012 so we’ll continue to keep you updated on progress. It’s about time something was done because every time I’ve been there recently, it’s always been very very busy. .. and for Disney, that means they are leaving revenue on the table!

Here’s some video from a recent visit I made:

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