Forty Cones on the Best Spaces: Oversight District Reserves Prime Disney Springs Parking
The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District has reserved roughly 40 parking spaces in the Orange Garage at Disney Springs, taking the rows closest to the AMC Theatres and Level99 entrance. Orange cones carry signs warning that unauthorized vehicles will be towed, and no explanation has been posted for the reservation.
About 40 of the most convenient parking spaces at Disney Springs are no longer available to guests. Orange traffic cones topped with laminated signs now reserve the rows closest to the AMC Theatres and Level99 entrance in the Orange Garage for vehicles belonging to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, the government body that owns and runs the garages.
Key details
- What: Roughly 40 parking spaces marked "Reserved for CFTOD Vehicles"
- Where: Orange Garage at Disney Springs, near the AMC Theatres and Level99 entrance
- Signage: Laminated signs on orange cones warning that unauthorized vehicles will be towed at the owner's expense
- Who owns the garage: The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, not Disney
- Reason given: None posted
What the signs actually say
Each reserved space has a cone in it, and each cone carries the same laminated notice: reserved for CFTOD vehicles, with a line underneath warning that anything parked there without authorization will be towed at the owner's expense. The count comes to roughly 40 spaces spread across multiple rows.
Location is what makes this noticeable. The blocked rows sit directly across from the escalators and the entrance most people walk through to reach AMC Theatres and Level99. In a garage where the difference between level one and level four is a long walk with tired kids, those are the spaces guests circle for. No similar signage appears on other levels or in other sections of the Orange Garage.
Who CFTOD is, and why it controls the garage
The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District is the successor to the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the special governing body that handled roads, utilities, fire service, and permitting across Walt Disney World property for more than half a century. Florida restructured Reedy Creek in 2023 and replaced its Disney-appointed board with a board appointed by the governor. The new district kept the same core responsibilities, which is why it, and not Disney, holds the deed to the Disney Springs parking structures.
That ownership makes the reservation legal on its face. A property owner marking spaces in its own garage is ordinary. The question fans keep landing on is one of scale and placement: why 40 spaces, and why the ones with the shortest walk to the door.
What guests should expect on their next visit
Parking at Disney Springs remains free, and the Orange Garage is still the largest of the three structures on property, alongside the Lime and Grapefruit garages. The overhead availability indicators that show green or red above each space still work, so the practical effect is a slightly longer hunt during peak evening hours rather than a shortage.
Anyone heading to a movie at AMC or a night at Level99 should plan to park a level up or a row over. Ignoring the cones is not worth it given the posted towing warning.
The buzz
- The district that governs Walt Disney World has taken the best guest parking in the busiest garage on property, and posted no explanation for it.
- The signage is temporary in nature, cones and laminated paper rather than painted stalls, which leaves open whether this is a short-term need or a standing arrangement.
- Every question fans have raised about CFTOD since 2023 has come back to the same theme: a public board making decisions inside a resort that millions of people visit, with limited visibility into why.
Why this matters for fans
Forty parking spaces will not change anyone's trip. What it does is put an abstract governance change in front of guests in a very concrete way. Most visitors have never thought about who owns the pavement at Disney Springs, and now there is a row of cones spelling it out on the way to the movies. Until the district explains the need, the cones are the only statement available.