Lake Buena Vista ( or ) is a city in Orange County,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, United States. It is mostly known for being the mailing address for

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort is an destination resort, entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Wa ...

, although almost all of the resort facilities, including all four theme parks, are physically located in the adjacent city of Bay Lake. It is one of two Florida municipalities inside the

Central Florida Tourism Oversight District The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD), formerly the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID), is the governing jurisdiction and Special district (United States), special taxing district for the land of Walt Disney World Resort. It ...

, which also contains

, the other being Bay Lake. The permanent residential population of Lake Buena Vista was 24 at the 2020 census. The city is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area, more commonly known as

Greater Orlando The Orlando metropolitan area (officially, for U.S. census purposes, the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area) is an inland metropolitan area in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. Its principal cities ...

or the

Orlando metropolitan area The Orlando metropolitan area (officially, for U.S. census purposes, the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area) is an inland metropolitan area in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. Its principal cities ...

History

Chapter 67-1965 of the Laws of Florida, incorporating the ''City of Reedy Creek'', was signed into law by Governor

Claude R. Kirk, Jr. Claude Roy Kirk Jr. (January 7, 1926 – September 28, 2011) was an American businessman, politician, and Marine Corps veteran who served as the 36th governor of Florida from 1967 to 1971. A member of the Republican Party for most his career, ...

on May 12, 1967, the same day he also signed chapters 67-764 (creating the

Reedy Creek Improvement District The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD), formerly the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID), is the governing jurisdiction and Special district (United States), special taxing district for the land of Walt Disney World Resort. It ...

), also known as the

Reedy Creek Improvement Act The Reedy Creek Improvement Act, otherwise known as House Bill No. 486, was a law enacted in the U.S. state of Florida in 1967 establishing the area surrounding the Walt Disney World Resort (the Reedy Creek Improvement District) as its own coun ...

, and 67-1104 (incorporating the city of Bay Lake). It was located fully inside the Reedy Creek Improvement District. The city was controlled by

The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16 ...

and allowed it powers that other area attractions had not had. Chapter 69-1527, which became law on July 3, 1969, without the governor's approval, redefined the city boundaries. The city was completely moved, taking over some land that had been part of the City of Bay Lake (and was given up by Chapter 69-836, which became a law the same day) and including some other land that had formerly been unincorporated. Soon after, the City of Reedy Creek was renamed to the ''City of Lake Buena Vista'' to better reflect its new location, through which Reedy Creek did not flow. " Buena Vista" comes from the name of the street in

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank had a Census-estimated population of 102,755 as of 2023. The city was ...

, where

is headquartered. The Reedy Creek Improvement District had all the powers of the city and more, raising the question of why cities needed to be incorporated inside it.

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

's original plans for the site were to construct a futuristic, fully-functional city; a planned " community of the future". This was never built, but some of the ideas were incorporated into the EPCOT theme park and later

Celebration, Florida Celebration is a master-planned community (MPC) and census-designated place (CDP) in Osceola County, Florida, United States. A suburb of Orlando, Celebration is located near Walt Disney World Resort and was originally developed by The Walt Dis ...

. The only residents of the city are Disney employees and their immediate family members who live in a small community on Royal Oak Court, north of

Disney Springs Disney Springs is an outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment complex at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, near Orlando. First opened in 1975 as Lake Buena Vista Shopping Village, it has been expanded and rebra ...

. From 1971 to 2022, the only landowners are fully owned

subsidiaries A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidiary company. Unl ...

of Disney, and rights-of-way for state and county roads. On February 27, 2023, the Florida Legislature passed House Bill 9B to supersede the

, replacing the Reedy Creek Improvement District with the

Geography

The approximate coordinates for the City of Lake Buena Vista is located at (28.377362, –81.521728). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (4.02%) is water.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild winters. According to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, the City of Lake Buena Vista has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

zone (''Cfa'').

The lake

Lake Buena Vista is a small body of water located east of the Buena Vista Golf Course, west of the crossing of State Road 535 and

Interstate 4 Interstate 4 (I-4) is an Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of Florida, maintained by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). Spanning along a generally southwest–northeast axis ...

. The lake, which was called "Blake Lake" before its acquisition by Disney, was named for Buena Vista Street in Burbank, California, where Disney's corporate headquarters are located. Several Walt Disney Company business entities had names containing " Buena Vista", a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

phrase that means "good view". In 2015, guide maps for the

shopping, dining, and entertainment district started promoting Village Lake, which the district and Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa borders, as "Lake Buena Vista". The actual lake and the promoted lake are connected via a stream, which is crossed by a bridge linking Disney Springs' Marketplace area with Saratoga Springs Resort.

Demographics

2010 and 2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 24 people, 3 households, and 2 families residing in the city. As of the 2010 United States census, there were 10 people, 3 households, and 3 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 16 people, 9 households, and 5 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 3.3 inhabitants per square mile (1.3/km). There were 11 housing units at an average density of 2.3 per square mile (0.9/km). The racial makeup of the city was 100.00%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

. In 2000, there are 9 households out of which 11.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 0.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.4% were non-families. 44.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.78 and the average family size was 2.40. In 2000, in the city, the population was spread out with 12.5% under the age of 18, 0.0% from 18 to 24, 18.8% from 25 to 44, 37.5% from 45 to 64, and 31.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 53 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.0 males. In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $39,375, and the median income for a family was $62,500. Males had a median income of $60,000 versus $38,750 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $25,769. 0.0% of the population and 0.0% of families were below the poverty line.

Points of interest

Walt Disney World Resort The Walt Disney World Resort is an entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Walt Disney Company. ...

** Typhoon Lagoon **

** Lake Buena Vista Golf Course
Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Disney Springs Resort Hotel

Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista Disney Springs Resort Area Hotel

Government and infrastructure

Reedy Creek Improvement District Fire Department Emergency Services

The

has its Fire Department Emergency Services station in Bay Lake, near Lake Buena Vista.

Education

Lake Buena Vista is within Orange County Public Schools. The only subdivision within Lake Buena Vista (Royal Oak Court) falls within the attendance zones of Sand Lake Elementary School, Southwest Middle School, and Dr. Phillips High School.Dr Phillips High School Zone
Orange County Public Schools Office of Pupil Assignment. July 31, 2008. Retrieved on April 21, 2017.

Notes

References

External links

Official Website for the City of Lake Buena VistaInformation
at

website {{authority control Cities in Orange County, Florida Company towns in Florida Cities in the Greater Orlando Populated places established in 1967 Cities in Florida 1967 establishments in Florida