Epic Universe & Universal Orlando News: Permits, Demolition, and New Construction

Roller coaster demolition, new ride construction, and permits filed across Universal Orlando, including Epic Universe—where work is already happening in multiple places within the resort’s newest theme park. Rip Ride Rockit demolition is nearly complete as ride track shows up at a recycling center. And new permit notes describe upcoming demolition at Lost Continent.

Let’s dig into all of those projects and more, in today’s news update. See the video version of this story below for additional visuals.

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HOLLYWOOD RIP RIDE ROCKIT DEMO

Beginning our update at Universal Studios Florida, the former Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit roller coaster demolition is nearing the end.

The station’s roof structure is being removed this week, after seeing all of its interior structure gutted in recent days.

The coaster’s iconic vertical lift remains as one of the last pieces standing.

Removed sections of the coaster have been sent off to a metals recycling facility.

Pieces of track from the ride can be spotted here, piled up and ready to be sorted, salvaged, and sent off for future use as something new.

The new attraction that is replacing the former coaster is already under construction, before demolition has even completed.

New concrete forms for this new attraction’s maintenance bay have taken shape. These footings may be for supports of coaster maintenance tracks set within the structure.

The rebar for these structural foundations are being inspected this week, according to permits, and after approved they can be poured.

The area between this future maintenance building and Race Through New York is being prepared for the construction of a new station building and possible ride entrance for the upcoming roller coaster.

The overlay graphic below from Tommy Hawkins shows outlines of the plans, giving us an idea of how this future station building will fit within this area.

The overlay above also shows how the footings line up within the future maintenance building.

Rounded forms are visible in the area of the new ride closest to CityWalk.

These shapes will be used to pour the concrete around the rebar for the new coaster’s footings in this area.

Track has not yet been spotted for this yet-to-be announced roller coaster, despite the ride already under construction. However, new shipping logs do indicate that something purchased by Universal is being shipped from Intamin this month.

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LOST CONTINENT PERMIT UPDATE

Over at Islands of Adventure new notes on the demolition permits for Lost Continent have the City of Orlando requesting additional information for this upcoming project.

One permit has the city requesting building numbers or descriptions for all of the restaurants, retail, rides, etc. that are planned to be demolished.

Another permit does happen to describe some of the demolition work to be done, as it relates to nearby utilities.

In the permit notes one building number is mentioned, Building 231. That is the building number for Poseidon’s Fury.

The permit notes also mention how the demolition plans call for a statue to be removed.

Demolition work may not start for several more months, or at least until Rip Ride Rockit demolition has been completed.

No one seems to be certain of what will eventually replace Lost Continent, but with talk of The Simpsons’ rights contract possibly being renewed, many are wondering if we will see Pokemon attractions built here in Islands of Adventure instead of over at Studios.

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EPIC UNIVERSE NEWS

Moving now to Epic Universe, the Stardust Racers roller coaster has reopened after being closed for a little over two weeks following the tragic death of a guest after riding.

Universal claims the ride has been deemed safe by investigators. Officials from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services have conducted their own investigation and reached the same conclusion.

In a letter to Team Members, Universal Orlando president Karen Irwin said that the ride “functioned as intended” and that they are “updating operational procedures and attraction signage to reinforce existing ride warnings and physical eligibility requirements at Stardust Racers and other rides.”

Stardust Racers, as well as five other rides across the resort, now require guests who use mobility devices to be able to walk independently to ride. This includes Dragon Racers Rally and Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment in this park, and Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, and Jurassic World VelociCoaster in Islands of Adventure.

This is an ongoing story, and there are many unanswered questions surrounding the incident—but at this time the ride has reopened without any modifications to the coaster itself.

Looking nearby Stardust Racers, a backstage tunnel structure was erected several weeks ago.

This tunnel was first seen in permits back in June, and was described as a prefabricated aluminum tunnel for protection of the backstage access road.

Progress has been made on the green wall separating the theme park from the water treatment plant next door.

17′ foot-tall panels can be seen installed along the eastern edge of the park.

A new permit has been posted with Orange County related to Project 915 at Epic Universe.

Project 915 is for work to be done in a small expansion plot located between the park’s entrance area and Super Nintendo World.

The permit calls for the addition of a “Construction Job Site Trailer.”

This may indicate that work is finally ready to begin soon at what we expect to be the construction of a multi-story event flex space with Team Member break areas on an upper level.

Vertical construction on this project cannot begin just yet though, as the site work permit has not yet been approved.

A new permit for the Wizarding World at Epic Universe is described as work for an “Interior Buildout.”

The building number for this work is listed as B1650. This is a cluster of buildings found around the alley on the right side of the land, which includes the K. Rammelle candy store, Le Gobelet Noir dining location, Bar Moonshine, and a yet-to-open robe shop.

It’s possible that the permit could be for the interior buildout of the Mademoiselle Malkin’s robe shop, an empty retail location that did not open with the park.

However, recent rumors suggest that the small Bar Moonshine could be expanded into Team Member office and storage space behind it, so this permit could be for that. This popular bar could use the additional room to better serve its often long line of patrons.

New Notices of Commencement have been filed for work by contractors Falcon’s Attractions and Adena Corporation. These documents do not have related permits listed on them, so they could be for anything.

Falcon’s Attractions recently acquired Oceaneering, so their notices may simply be related to maintenance work on the Battle at the Ministry ride.

Adena Corporation does construction work for attractions, including roller coasters, but they also offer general contracting and design management, so their notices of work could be for pretty much anything. The document does describe the work as “Custom Element Fabrication and Installation.”

Remember in a prior update, we also discussed additional notices of commencement for work by companies who design theme park attractions. While we do not have a project number or any permits yet at this time, it is interesting seeing so many new contracts for work to be done.

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NEW LAND NEAR EPIC UNIVERSE

Also in a prior update we discussed a water management permit for the West Parcel Mass Grading project. This 53 acre plot of land is located to the west of Epic Universe, running along Universal Blvd..

The permit application fees have been paid, but the county is asking for additional information before approving it. Universal has until the end of the year to clarify some details for this upcoming grading work, including the intended future use of the land, so we will keep an eye on this upcoming project.

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HOLIDAYS AT EPIC UNIVERSE

And finally, Universal has officially announced that this first holiday season will see decorations up in two worlds of Epic Universe.

In keeping in the tradition of the older Universal Orlando parks, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic will be decked out for Christmas. No official announcement for a special show this season, as they have in the other Wizarding Worlds.

The other world to receive a holiday overlay is Celestial Park, with Universal saying:

“…Epic Universe, will also feature seasonal lighting and decorations in Celestial Park – the imaginative first world guests encounter at the theme park that features dining, entertainment and attractions against a backdrop of stunning architecture inspired by astronomical and mythological elements.”

The Holidays at Universal Orlando run from November 21st through January 4th.

We’ll keep you up to date on these projects, as well as new rides being built at Walt Disney World like Encanto in Animal Kingdom and Monsters Inc in Hollywood Studios, so stay tuned.

Be sure to see the video version of this story for additional visuals. Big thanks to Bioreconstruct for sharing all of the aerial photos and more seen in this story.

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Subscribe to the news feed or enter your email address below to never miss an update. Official Art: Universal Destinations & Experiences | Aerial Photos: Bioreconstruct | Permit Documents: fasttrack.ocfl.net | Additional Photos & Graphics: Alicia Stella | Other Images as Captioned