Prison Construction Next to US Disney World?…Presidential Candidate DeSantis Plans to Proceed

Bill Proposed to Give Disney Special District Control to the Main Regulatory Committee

Ron DeSantis, the leading Republican presidential candidate and governor of Florida, has once again launched a strong offensive against Disney. He has begun the process of revoking the special district-related powers that Disney has enjoyed for over 50 years, even threatening to build a prison near Disney World.

On the 17th (local time), according to The New York Times (NYT) and others, Governor DeSantis announced a bill to the Florida Supervisory Board, composed of his close aides, granting control over the special district where Disney World is located. He stated that the board would have the authority to decide how to develop lands adjacent to the Disney theme park, mentioning the possibility of constructing a state prison along with state parks and other amusement parks in the area.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

Business Insider pointed out that "such developments could affect the property values of nearby real estate."

The Reedy Creek Improvement District, where Disney World Resort is located, was designated as a special district by the state of Florida in 1967, recognizing Disney's autonomy. In the mid-1960s, Walt Disney purchased land in Florida and persuaded the state legislature to create the special district, allowing Disney to operate like a quasi-governmental agency by developing the area and levying taxes without state government approval.

Governor DeSantis has repeatedly warned since last year that he would revoke the special district status amid ongoing conflicts with Disney. In February, Florida lawmakers passed a bill granting DeSantis, as governor, the authority to effectively control the board overseeing municipal services and development in the special district covering central Florida, including Walt Disney World Resort.

Disney officially refrained from responding to Governor DeSantis's attack on this day. However, recently, Bob Iger, Disney's CEO, criticized DeSantis's attacks as "anti-business and anti-Florida retaliation." He also expressed that if DeSantis continues to politically target Disney, the company might reduce its future investments in Disney World. Currently, Disney plans to invest more than $17 billion in Florida's Disney World over the next decade, which is expected to create approximately 13,000 jobs.

Ron DeSantis Florida Governor
[Photo by AP News]

The conflict between Governor DeSantis and Disney began in March last year. At that time, Bob Chapek, then Disney CEO, made statements opposing a bill that restricted discussions of sex and gender identity in elementary school classrooms. Enraged, Governor DeSantis personally requested the state legislature to revoke various tax benefits for Disney.

The background of this conflict is interpreted as having political motives. Disney's opposition was seen as supporting progressive causes. The conservative camp refers to this as "Woke capitalism" and is conducting a large-scale "anti-woke" movement. Originally, "woke" meant being aware of social inequalities such as race and gender, but in recent years, it has mainly been used to disdain those who enforce political correctness (PC).

Governor DeSantis emphasized, "We are a government based on law, not a government of a particular individual or a California-based 'woke' corporation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.