The Reedy Creek Improvement District: The State of the Art in a Republican-Defended Disney-Theme-Park-Thermosphere Conflict
In February, DeSantis signed a bill that removed all the Disney-aligned board members and gave him the power to name their replacements. The new board took over in early March – a month after the outgoing board had already moved to turn over oversight of development to Disney and gave the company veto authority over any public project in the district.
The current supervisors of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District said at a meeting that their predecessors last month signed a development agreement with the company that gave Disney maximum developmental power over the theme park resort’s 27,000 acres in central Florida.
DeSantis and Florida GOP lawmakers retaliated by eliminating the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the special taxing authority that effectively gave Disney control of the land in and around its sprawling Orlando-area theme parks. But Republicans in control of the state legislature changed course this year and voted instead to fire the board overseeing the district and gave DeSantis power to name all five replacements. It also renamed Reedy Creek as the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District and eliminated some of its powers.
Yet, DeSantis on Thursday continued to claim victory over Disney in a dispute that first began last year when the company vowed to help overturn a new law that limited the instruction of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. DeSantis responded by vowing to strip the company of its longstanding power to tax, borrow and build infrastructure projects in Central Florida in an area known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
In a quiet move that’s enchanting the internet, the former Reedy Creek Development board signed its power back to Disney before leaving office, a binding declaration that doesn’t expire until England’s monarchy dies out.
“We’re going to have to correct it,” board member Brian Aungst said Wednesday. It’s a betrayal of the will of the voters and the Legislature. The board has the authority to govern.
“All agreements signed between Disney and the District were appropriate, and were discussed and approved in open, noticed public forums in compliance with Florida’s Government in the Sunshine law,” the company said. The February 8 meeting documents show it was seen by law in the outlying areas.
A contract approved five years ago made Disney the first major employer in central Florida to agree to a minimum hourly wage of $15, setting the trend for other workers in the region dominated by hospitality jobs.
costumed performers who perform as mickey mouse and other Disney Characters and bus drivers are some of the service workers who were covered by the agreement.
If the five-year contract is approved, union leaders say workers could see their hourly wages increase between $5.50 and $8.60 an hour by the end of the contract.
The Case for a New Board: Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis, Disney World, and England’s King Charles III
The new board that was brought in by the Governor to manage Disney’s taxing district is looking into legal action against the outgoing board over their multi-decade agreement between the entertainment giant and the board.
The new Board should take action because there are a number of issues that warrant consideration, such as giving away public rights without compensation to a private corporation, and the lack of consideration.
DeSantis stacked the board with political allies, including Tampa lawyer Martin Garcia, a prominent GOP donor; Bridget Ziegler, the wife of the new chairman of the Republican Party of Florida; and Peri, a former pastor who once suggested tap water could be making people gay.
At last month’s signing ceremony for the bill that gave him control of Reedy Creek’s board, DeSantis declared, “The corporate kingdom finally comes to an end.”
The declaration will not stop until twenty one years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III. DeSantis, after all, frequently refers to Walt Disney World as a “corporate kingdom.”
The Disney move caused allies of Trump to suggest that the governor was out-maneuvered.
Taylor Budowich, spokesman for the Make America Great Again PAC, said that the president brokered peace in the Middle East. Ron DeSantis was out-negotiated by Mickey Mouse.
Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis, Disney World, and a special tax district are once again making headlines, this time with a new cast member: England’s King Charles III.
The Board of Trustees of the Reedy Creek Development District and a Declaration of Restrictive Covenants: The Trump-Disney-Desantis Action Takes the Heat off GOP-Like Legislatures
The five allies who pledged to hold on to one of Florida’s largest employers don’t have the power to do anything until they take legal action.
A bill that took control of a special tax zone surrounding Walt Disney World was signed last month in a move widely seen as retaliation. Disney has been able to operate and expand with a lot of freedom thanks to the Reedy Creek Development District.
The governor gave it a new name, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, and appointed five of his allies to the board, including a prominent parents’ rights activist, a Christian nationalist and a lawyer who donated $50,000 to his campaign.
The board made a discovery while sitting for its second meeting on Wednesday that may prevent it from carrying out its agenda.
Called a Declaration of Restrictive Covenants, the measure allows Disney to have the final say on any alterations to the property and requires the board to inform Disney of plans for such alterations without conditions or delays.
Basically, the board loses “the majority of its ability to do anything beyond maintain the roads and maintain basic infrastructure,” as board member Ron Peri put it, according to local news outlet Click Orlando.
And, in an extra detail that the internet is devouring, the term of the agreement was set using the “Rule Against Perpetuities” — which states that a policy will continue until after a certain person dies.
Savvy social media users also pointed out that the tactic resembled one that Republicans have used following recent election losses. In places like Arizona, Michigan, North Carolina and Wisconsin, GOP-led legislatures overhauled state election laws, shoring up their party power before handing the reins over to incoming Democratic majorities.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2023/03/30/1167042594/disney-desantis-board-reedy-creek-charles
The Board of Commissioners of Reedy Creek: A Remark on the Restrictive Covenant Clause and the Failure of Special Tax Districts
As far as power moves go, this one does appear to be above board. A detailed note about the Restrictive Covenant clause was recorded in the Feb. 8 Reedy Creek agenda and meeting minutes. The agreement was registered a day later.
The documents are available online and there is no need for a public records request. The old board’s meeting was open to the public. (There were no public comments on the measure, which the board unanimously approved.)
And, yet, no one seemed to notice — or if they did, they didn’t raise an alarm. Not the new board, not the governor, not the legislators or the reporters actively monitoring developments (guilty).
When NPR asked Disney about the various steps of the takeover, the companyStraight-faced said it wouldn’t fight the takeover.
Could the worst case be a new law being passed by DeSantis? It’s possible, but any law that goes beyond the scope of action against restrictive covenants or special districts could have bigger-than-life consequences.
One of the governor’s earlier plans to dissolve all special tax districts in the state fell apart after analysts pointed out that doing so might ultimately raise taxes for the counties next to Reedy Creek, frustrating local residents.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2023/03/30/1167042594/disney-desantis-board-reedy-creek-charles
On the DeSantis-Kirk Law Firm Scenario for the Florida Sheriff’s Investigation During the 2003-2004 Roundtable
Cooper & Kirk was one of the law firms hired by the board to look into the contract. The Washington, D.C. firm that DeSantis has paid millions of dollars to help defend his policies were cited in the report.
NPR reached out to members of the board for comment but had not received a reply by the time of publication. One of the board’s highest-profile members said that the board wouldn’t stand for this and wouldn’t back down.
There has been a lot of back and forth between the state and the people who have lost their homes, but rest assured, you won’t see nothing yet,” the governor said. “There’s more to come in that regard.”
I don’t think it’s appropriate for shareholder funds to be shilling for gender ideology in kindergarten, but they decided to do that
“They basically got everything they wanted for the many decades they’ve been operating in Florida – until now, because now there’s a new sheriff in town,” DeSantis said at Thursday’s event.
In his Thursday speech, the author spoke about the latest developments and his optimism, but did not mention his battle with Disney. The saga typically occupies a prominent space in his remarks – often with a lengthy tale about his Disney World wedding – and it’s the subject of an entire chapter of his new book.
Reply to the Communication to the Board of Supervisors of the Florida Attorney-General’s Electoral Committee on February 8, 2015, via the Alternating Local Group Method
The February 8 vote has been the source of a records request sent by the office of the Florida Attorney General. In a letter to the former board members, Moody’s office warned of “civil and criminal penalties” for not turning over any responsive records.