Many thanks to FReeper abb for this post.
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Posted on 04/18/2023 3:49:01 AM PDT by Joe Brower
A New Prison Near Walt Disney World? Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Turns Up The Heat On Reedy Creek
Deadline
Jill Goldsmith
4/17/2023
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis insisted again today that he and the state legislature can and will overturn any Disney development deal and retake control of the acreage that’s home to Walt Disney World and was administered by the company in what’s called the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
He called the recently discovered Disney contracts legally unsound but said that even if they weren’t, “Florida statutes provide the legislature with the authority to revoke development agreements in this exact kind of instance.” He told a press conference this afternoon in Lake Buena Vista at the Reed Creek building that the state “will make sure the agreements are revoked and the people’s will is established and upheld.”
How will that look for the House of Mouse? The governor seemed to relish ticking off possibilities, including tighter building and safety inspections (he called out the WDW monorail in particular), higher pay for first responders, affordable housing for park employees, and no more “medical authoritarian policies” like forcing patrons to wear masks.
He mused about the possibility of developing district land that Disney doesn’t own. “People are like, ‘Well, what should we do with this land? Maybe create a state park. Maybe try to do more amusement parks?’ Someone even said, ‘Maybe you even need another state prison.’
“Who knows? I just think that the possibilities are endless.”
Disney declined to comment.
Former CEO Bob Chapek crossed the governor a year ago when, under pressure from employees, he came out against the state’s so-called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill. Florida lawmakers voted to rescind Disney’s longstanding Reedy Creek autonomy. But a Disney-appointed old board enacted long-term development agreements that appeared to be an end run around DeSantis and the new District board that he appointed. The deal was public but came as a surprise to the new board, which was seated early this year.
Current Disney chief executive Bob Iger recently slammed DeSantis at a the company’s annual meeting, noting the area in question was swampland before Walt Disney developed it. “We love the state of Florida. And I think that’s reflected in not only how much we’ve invested over the last 50 years, but how much we’ve given back in the form of jobs and community service taxes which you brought up, tourism, of course, and all sorts of other responsible business practices. We’ve also always respected and appreciated what the state has done for us,” he said, “but it’s kind of been a two-way street.”
A person familiar with the situation noted that the development agreement had been approved by the state.
On safety, the person said Disney has been a leader and continues to develop procedures and best practices that are leveraged across the industry, including a state-wide memorandum requiring quarterly reporting of any serious ride-related injuries and immediate reporting of fatalities, biannual site visits and reviews.
On housing, in 2022, WDW announced it would be contributing nearly 80 acres of land into more than 1,300 units of attainable housing for Central Florida. There’s been talk, “but very little follow-through” on housing, the governor said at his press conference.
Disney is the largest taxpayer in the state with $1.146 billion in state and local taxes paid last year.
DeSantis had also scoffed at the fact that Disney has been allowed to do its own property assessment. The person said Disney does not assess its own property but that’s done annually by the Orange County tax assessor or the Osceola County tax assessor.
Disney thinks they pulled a fast one on the state. But the state is about to show them the true power of government.
The fact is regardless of what was agreed in the reedy creek district, the state can use eminent domain to claim any part of the park and turn it into low-income housing or a jail, or put a freeway straight through it!
Many thanks to FReeper abb for this post.
Sewage treatment plants...just saying
i found disneyland just plain dumb...i was about 30 and my kids were 8, 10 & 12.
Never been a Disney fan.
Our best vacations were fishing in Canada.
Disney World shuts its gates and departs... they need to restore the property back to its original habitat.
Orlando was a beautiful area before the golden shovel broke ground, and the ribbon was cut.
The whiff of alcohol and weed is a small price to pay when getting strapped into a poorly-maintained rattletrap, knowing that derelict is back on the path to upstanding citizenship.
We took our kids bacon the 80’s and I must say they weren’t impressed and had no desire to go back. Went with two of the grandsons and ,again, not impressed. Two more grandsons have never been and have no desire to go. Have to admit the granddaughters loved it when they were little and into princesses.
Now that the kids are grown, the wife and I like to go gambling as casinos, especially in Vegas. We stick to a gambling budget and actually spend less money than we did at Disney. It's also a lot more fun, even when we "lose". Even the food is better.
That would be a disaster for Florida. Immediate blue state if they did that.
Heard some leftist criticism that it would be detrimental to kids visiting Disney. That’s for parents to decide. If they react by avoiding globo-homo Disney, they would be unwittingly doing their kids a favor.
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