The Walt Disney Company is planning a major reboot. Not another superhero movie franchise, but its relationship with Florida.
After dropping its fight with Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) earlier this year, Disney is now poised to invest up to $17 billion in Disney World, including opening a fifth theme park.
The pending agreement is between Disney and the Central Florida Tourism and Oversight District and would last for the next 15 years. A vote for final approval is expected later this month, with the five DeSantis-appointed supervisors who oversee the Disney World district signing off Wednesday on the initial approval, according to an AP report.
If all goes as planned, Disney would receive approval to build a fifth major theme park at Disney World — presumably, something along the scale of Animal Kingdom. In addition, Disney would increase retail and restaurant space by more than 20 percent, and would significantly enlarge its hotel footprint.
The agreement would mark a major reboot for Disney after it embarked on a ruinous culture war by opposing Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Law, which prohibited radical LGBTQ indoctrination in schools.
Disney’s ill-advised attempt to overturn the will of Florida voters resulted in a barrage of lawsuits. Among the casualties was the company’s self-governing privileges in the Orlando area — a valuable perk Disney had enjoyed for five decades. Disney also reaped a whirlwind of negative publicity, resulting in incalculable brand damage that executives are still trying to fix.
Disney recently laid off 7000 workers worldwide while slashing budgets across its numerous media properties.
As Breitbart News reported, Disney dropped its fight against Florida in March by announcing the withdrawal of its lawsuits in the so-called “Reedy Creek” dispute. The move was widely seen as a capitulation on Disney’s part as CEO Bob Iger was seeking to put an end to the non-stop stream of negative media coverage.
As part of the new agreement, Disney is required to award at least half of its construction projects to Florida-based companies and spend at least $10 million on affordable housing in central Florida.
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