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The genesis for what would one day be known as Epcot began in the early 1960s with Walt Disney himself. After having many grandchildren, Walt began to worry about the world that they would grow up in <ref name= "florida"> https://sites.google.com/site/theoriginalepcot/the-florida-project </ref>. As he looked around at the cities of America, he saw places that were full of crime, disorganization, dirt and chaos. Disneyland on the other hand , was the opposite of these things, and Walt decided that he could take the Disneyland philosophy and apply it to the real world. To go along with this, Disneyland had also proved that Walt and his company were very efficient in the art of constructing and designing buildings. With this information in mind, he began to read about how to start a city.

Walt’s plan for a Utopian city got its name in 1966, when Disney narrated a video in which he described his dream <ref name= "film"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLCHg9mUBag </ref>. The city would be a part of Walt's secret Florida Project in central Florida, and would be called the Experimental Community of Tomorrow, or EPCOT<ref name= "film"/>. Walt called EPCOT, “the most exciting, by far the most important,” and the heart of what he planned to do in Disney WorldFlorida. The city would take its cues from the new ideas and technologies of American industry and would be a “community of tomorrow”<ref name= "film"/>. Walt wanted to plan and design every detail of the city, in order to meet the public's needs <ref name= "florida"/>. Industry was also expected to partner with Disney to solve the problems of the society<ref name= "florida"/>. Walt said that EPCOT would never be finished, it would always be improving. He and he hoped that when it was built, it would house about 20,000 people <ref name= "florida"/>.

EPCOT was laid out to be the perfect city. It took its design from Disneyland, in that there would be a central hub that roads and monorails would connect to the other parts of the city. The center “hub” of EPCOT would have been a large business area <ref name= "film"/>. The area would have been under a dome that would control the temperature and weather. The business area would also have included office buildings, shopping, and the “crown jewel” of EPCOT-, the Cosmopolitan Hotel, which would be located at the center of EPCOT and would be 30 stories tall<ref name= "film"/>. The hotel would also house (in the basement) the transportation lobby of the city<ref name= "film"/>. Underground, People Movers would transport passengers to the various parts of town, and cars and trucks would also have underground highways that they would be able to use (although no gas vehicles would travel above land)<ref name= "film"/>. The hub would also feature offices, theaters, nightlife, restaurants, and a shopping center that would sell items from around the world<ref name= "film"/>.

Outside of the business area would was to be the high density apartment housing<ref name= "film"/>. Citizens who lived here would have the luxury of being close to the business area, but would have live in apartment complexes. Outside of the apartment housing was to be the recreation area, which would have consisted of things such as pools, parks, churches and schools<ref name= "film"/>. Beyond the recreation area would have been the residential neighborhood, where a large number of families would have lived. This area would have consisted of housing and small recreation areas such as playgrounds<ref name= "film"/>.

The final part of EPCOT would have been the industrial center<ref name= "film"/>. This is where companies from around the world would work on various projects<ref name= "film"/>. Walt wanted guests to be able to visit these companies, and hopefully take some inspiration for industry home with them <ref name= "florida"/>. Citizens of EPCOT would take a monorail to the rest of Walt Disney World and the EPCOT industrial center. The monorail and the [[People Mover ]] were expected to be the main methods of transportation in EPCOT thus eliminating traffic<ref name= "film"/>.

When Walt Disney died in 1966, the future of EPCOT was forever changed. In 1967 the Reedy Creek Improvement District was signed into law giving Disney more liberties when it came to construction <ref name= "widen"> http://www.omniluxe.net/wyw/epcot.htm </ref>. Furthermore, the state of Florida created the cities of Bay Lake and Reedy Creek, which were essentially governed by the Walt Disney Company <ref> http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2004/02/23/story1.html </ref>. Although this seemed like the first step towards the construction of EPCOT, Disney’s board of the directors decided that they did not want to build the city. Despite Roy O. Disney’s desire to see EPCOT built, when Walt Disney World opened in 1971 it consisted of only the [[Magic Kingdom]], the Contemporary, the Polynesidan Polynesian and the Fort Wilderness Campgrounds.

By 1975, Disney had determined that EPCOT as a day to day community was not a feasible idea. Instead, Disney announced that they would be taking the ideals and goals of EPCOT and building it in the form of a theme park. In July of 1975 Disney announced that their plans for EPCOT would have three main components <ref name= "florida"/>. The first component would be the EPCOT Institute, which would have helped facilitate the flow of research and information from EPCOT’s other components, to the parks park's sponsors and the general public<ref name= "florida"/>.. The second component of EPCOT would be various “satellites” where research and development of future products and new systems in fields such as: energy, communication, agriculture, and education would take place<ref name= "florida"/>.. The EPCOT satellites would be located both on Walt Disney World property and off<ref name= "florida"/>.. The third, and most perhaps most prominent component of the 1975 EPCOT plan, was the Future World Theme Center<ref name= "florida"/>.. Here, guests would be able to visit various pavilions that showed the research that was being done at EPCOT. Fields including communication, science and technology would all be showcased in the Future World Theme Center<ref name= "florida"/>.