It's one thing to call Disney out for it's lame woke shenanagens and perhaps take some municipal control back over the special assessment district. It's quite another to go on a rampage against Mickey and make abortion illegal after 6 weeks.
Whatever chances the Gov had in winning the presidency have rapidly gone to zero. He's now just a bible thumping extreme Trump wannabe. Folks aren't interesting in that.
Ironic note: Trump is siding with Disney.
DeSantis is threatening to build a state prison next to Walt Disney World
Florida's governor wants lawmakers to push a bill to revoke Disney’s power over its district
By Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz
Ron DeSantis has made his next move in his tit-for-tat with Disney.
The Florida governor’s efforts to control Disney’s special district by appointing a new board initially failed due to a clever multi-decade development agreement signed off by the previous board, which left the new committee with virtually no power. DeSantis is now trying to find a way to nullify that agreement, announcing on Monday (Apr. 17) that the state’s Republican legislature will push a bill to allow his board to reassert broader control of Disney’s district.
DeSantis is considering various options to get back at the company, which first fell foul of the governor for speaking out against the so-called Don’t Say Gay bill. During his latest attack, DeSantis floated the idea of building a state park, a rival amusement park, or even a new state prison next to the company’s central Florida theme parks. “The possibilities are endless,” he smirked.
The suggestion was, in the words of Brandon Wolf of political advocacy group Equality Florida, “a truly unhinged display of ego.”
Tomorrow (Apr. 19), DeSantis’s Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board is set to meet to discuss Resolution No. 639. As reported last week by the Orlando Business Journal, the resolution seeks to assert “superior authority and control” over planning, zoning and other land use in the cities of Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista—the property in and around Walt Disney’s major theme parks. Experts consulted by the publication doubt the resolution alone will be enough to supersede the previous agreement.
What’s the deal with Disney’s development agreement
Right before DeSantis stripped Disney of its self-governing status and replaced the board with his picks, the previous Reedy Creek Improvement District board quietly signed a development agreement that gives the company maximum developmental power over the theme park resort’s 27,000 acres territory in central Florida. The deal gives Disney the power to build projects at the highest density and sell or assign those development rights to other district landowners without the board’s approval.
Plus, the agreement prevents DeSantis’ board from using Disney’s name, symbols associated with it and the theme park, and the likeness of Disney characters without the company’s permission. The company reserves the right to sue for damages for violations.
The agreement included a “royal clause” that essentially makes it valid until perpetuity. The new board was left with just basic road and infrastructure maintenance.
What’s in DeSantis’ bill to revoke Disney’s control
🎢 End a carveout that exempted the company from state inspections on its theme parks rides. That would be a callous move, according to Richard Foglesong, a Rollins College professor and author of Married to the Mouse: Walt Disney World and Orlando, which dives into Disney’s governance. “Inspections for the kind of rides at Disney go well beyond county fairs,” he said. “You need inspectors with the kind of expertise I think they [Disney] have.”
🚝 Get state inspectors to oversee its monorail system. It specifically targets special districts, and therefore Disney.
⚡ Urge the selling of the district’s utility in order to pay down the district’s $1 billion debts
😷 Make sure Disney never again implements a mask mandate in Disney World, as it did after shutting and reopening in the first year of the covid pandemic.
Comments