As we approach the 3-year anniversary of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ takeover of the former Reedy Creek Improvement District, we wanted to take a look at how the current operations of the District have largely returned to business as normal. This April will mark four years since DeSantis officially signed a bill to dismantle the Reedy Creek Improvement District, a move largely seen as retaliatory for Disney’s public stance against DeSantis’ “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
There have been a lot of ups and downs since then, but the District has recently gone on a spending spree to support Disney’s theme park expansion plans. In fact, Disney and the District appear to be operating in lockstep, once again, as Disney enacts plans to “turbocharge” spending in the theme parks to the tune of $17 billion at Walt Disney World alone.
Oversight District Supports Disney “Turbocharge” Construction Projects
Following years of friction between the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD) and Walt Disney World, a settlement was reached back in March 2024 that saw tensions begin to dissipate, and kick off a series of changes within the District that would bring the temperature down.
Since then, we’ve seen Board of Supervisors members step down, starting with the loudest of the bunch. Following the settlement, Florida’s Chief Inspector General found that there were no laws broken by the former Reedy Creek Improvement District prior to DeSantis’ takeover.
Last month, the final retaliation-era Board members stepped down, both ahead of schedule. Now, the Board is completely comprised of members who appear to be more focused on the work and unburdened by political motives.
Now, the District appears to be in full support of Disney’s expansion plans, with little discussion or public deliberation when it comes to approving projects.
As we covered last Summer, the District planned on issuing some $175 million in new bonds to support the “extremely busy” development underway at Walt Disney World. Just weeks later, the District approved a new comprehensive plan in conjunction with Walt Disney World that allowed expansive development plans, including a fifth theme park if Disney should choose.
By late November, the District successfully issued $170 million in bonds to support 22 infrastructure projects around the District. Of course, those projects are, effectively, exclusively to support the expansion of Walt Disney World theme parks and resorts during an unprecedented time of growth.
An analysis by BlogMickey.com shows that the CFTOD is wasting no time in approving projects to use those $170 million worth of bonds. So far, the District has approved nearly $25 million worth of work in the past three months, with another $10.5 million up for consideration this month.
High-profile projects such as the expansion of energy plants to support projects at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and, more recently, Magic Kingdom were approved with no substantive discussion from the Board and unanimous approval. From the outside looking in, Walt Disney World is back to enjoying zero-friction approval from the local governing district that supports the 43-square-mile tourism destination.
Now, for a bit of commentary. Ultimately, this return to business as usual is a win. Walt Disney World was unfairly targeted by DeSantis as part of a political retaliation campaign as DeSantis eyed the White House. Once DeSantis’ presidential run ended, so too did his expensive stunt in using Walt Disney World as a punching bag.
Things were precarious there for a little while, with Disney CEO Bob Iger threatening to stop development at Walt Disney World. Now, with the Board completely comprised of non-political members, business can return to normal, which means that Disney’s investment at Walt Disney World can continue.
As a matter of fact, there are even some rumblings that the previously announced $17 billion could be on the low end of what Disney’s actual spend in the swamp may amount to, but we’ll have to see what incoming CEO Josh D’Amaro chooses to do once he gets the reins next month.
What appears to be clear is that while D’Amaro will certainly face friction from yield management, he likely won’t have to spend any time on friction from the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!