Reedy Creek Improvement District

[Nick]

So... this is getting actually a little interesting and almost certainly going to go to court. First big board meeting was today and the new board was already able to find in the Reedy Creek email system some emails that don't look great for Disney.

Of course I do find it a bit hilarious that the new RCID Board and the State are trying to prove WDW was self-dealing with Reedy Creek in the past (which we all know is absolutely the case) when the State is essentially now self-dealing with Reedy Creek to try to get a win.

Anyway, here's a good summary of today's events:

 

[OrlLover]

So... this is getting actually a little interesting and almost certainly going to go to court. First big board meeting was today and the new board was already able to find in the Reedy Creek email system some emails that don't look great for Disney.

Of course I do find it a bit hilarious that the new RCID Board and the State are trying to prove WDW was self-dealing with Reedy Creek in the past (which we all know is absolutely the case) when the State is essentially now self-dealing with Reedy Creek to try to get a win.

Anyway, here's a good summary of today's events:

Honestly I find this whole ordeal embarrassing for DeSantis and particularly frustrating.

We just had a huge flood just days ago and he is still trying to fight the mouse ?

Something has to give because this looking more ridiculous with every new headline coming out.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

Not the worst thing he's even done this week

 

[Nick]

Not the worst thing he's even done this week

I know what you're talking about but let's please keep this conversation on the RCID Board/Desantis vs. Disney situation. I know this is a really delicate situation to balance, but let's all put on our big boy pants in this thread and try our hardest to keep it from getting too political or else the thread is going to have to be locked again.

Disney is the governor's big fish. He's going to keep fighting this up until the Supreme Court if he has to as he picked this battle very specifically (in part due to Chapek's inept way of handling a controversy) and he wants to make it seem like he got one over on Disney to play to his base.

 

[OrlandoGuy]

Disney is the governor's big fish. He's going to keep fighting this up until the Supreme Court if he has to as he picked this battle very specifically (in part due to Chapek's inept way of handling a controversy) and he wants to make it seem like he got one over on Disney to play to his base.

The baffling thing is this move theoretically doesn’t appeal to his base at all. The last thing a GOP presidential candidate hopeful should want to be seen as is anti-business. It’s just coming off as a short-sighted grudge at this point and I don’t see how this helps his political standing at all.

 

[anihilnation]

The baffling thing is this move theoretically doesn’t appeal to his base at all. The last thing a GOP presidential candidate hopeful should want to be seen as is anti-business. It’s just coming off as a short-sighted grudge at this point and I don’t see how this helps his political standing at all.

His base is not traditional GOP, so it is business or capitalism etc., but is strictly ideological "anti-woke" in other words, what he seems as "freedom" is to be from the perceived "woke". In the long run, I think Disney will come out successful, though the grand irony is Disney did have too much power.

 

[Nick]

In the long run, I think Disney will come out successful, though the grand irony is Disney did have too much power.

This is true. He sort of did go after something worth going after but for all of the wrong reasons and now instead of Disney having too much power, it's the State.

 

[rageofthegods]

Lol "open a state prison there" please. Imagine running for president while being known as the guy who brought felons to Disney World.

 

[Brian G.]

Friendly reminder to please not bring up politics. I know it's a fine line with the topic at hand, but we really need to avoid crossing that line.

 

[mainejeff]

Friendly reminder to please not bring up politics. I know it's a fine line with the topic at hand, but we really need to avoid crossing that line.

This is one topic where that really is impossible because this really is all about....politics.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Disney is the governor's big fish.

Maybe like a whale. A white whale perhaps.

 

[SeventyOne]

Of course I do find it a bit hilarious that the new RCID Board and the State are trying to prove WDW was self-dealing with Reedy Creek in the past (which we all know is absolutely the case) when the State is essentially now self-dealing with Reedy Creek to try to get a win.

The State and Reedy Creek are a single entity -- legally there can be no "self-dealing" between them, they are one-in-the-same. The difference is that TWDC is a private entity not entitled to that level of power.

I realize people in the theme park community are going to by myopic on an issue like this, but but something similar happened in the Villages district, where the developer was essentially running what was a supposed to be an independent government entity. Some hefty fines ended up coming down on them. If Disney lawyers were drafting these docs for RCID, that's pretty damning evidence. If RCID wasn't following Sunshine Laws when they asked for those docs, even worse. With apologies to MaineJeff, there are zero politics at the heart of this matter, just statutes that may or may not have been followed.

 

[Nick]

This is one topic where that really is impossible because this really is all about....politics.

It is possible. It's not about state politics if you deal with the subject at hand which is RCID Board vs. Disney in trying to litigate whether the Disney last minute "King Clause" is legal or not. The governor certainly has a grudge, but he actually doesn't need to be brought up when discussing this situation. Everything he says and does regarding this situation is just posturing and should be ignored.

As I said in a prior post, please put on your big boy and big girl pants when in this thread and only post if you have something substantial to add or actually want to have a dialogue. No drive by political posting and honestly, the Governor doesn't need to be brought up in almost any posts anymore. This is all between the new RCID Board and Disney until this goes to court. Anything the Governor says until action is taken is just him being performative.

 

[Jake S]

I'm not trying to be difficult, but what's happening between the RCID board and Disney is quite literally politics. I understand why y'all don't want a full blown discussion on the Florida governor on this website (and frankly, I have no interest in having one in this forum either), but this power struggle is politics.

 

[Clive]

I'm not trying to be difficult, but what's happening between the RCID board and Disney is quite literally politics. I understand why y'all don't want a full blown discussion on the Florida governor on this website (and frankly, I have no interest in having one in this forum either), but this power struggle is politics.

I think the word we're looking for is "partisan." Let's avoid partisan politics wherever possible, with the acknowledgment that the line can sometimes be a bit blurry.

 

[Nick]

I'm not trying to be difficult, but what's happening between the RCID board and Disney is quite literally politics. I understand why y'all don't want a full blown discussion on the Florida governor on this website (and frankly, I have no interest in having one in this forum either), but this power struggle is politics.

In my recent post, I mentioned it wasn't "State Politics", which was probably confusing (because it's not entirely true). What I meant was, lets please try to treat this like a local politics case (avoid the Governor and the antics coming from Tallahassee unless it actually has an effect on what is going on with RCID and Disney.

As @Clive said, try to avoid bringing your own partisan politics into this and let's simply try to stay as fact based as possible with this discussion. It's not easy, but it's the tight rope that we're trying to walk.

With all of that said, the next Board Meeting is April 26th at 9:30am at the Lake Buena Vista Wyndam if anyone is interested in attending. That's the next time we'll hear something new about this.

 

[HandsomePete]

I’m honestly a little surprised the thread was unlocked - I get that it relates to Disney World, but all of this rapidly gets into topics that, frankly, nobody here really has much knowledge about. I mean, the first sentence of the thread was…

Disney saves so much in taxes each year by having the RCID

… which is wrong. Or all of these mythical benefits Disney gets like setting the utility rates… which basically works out to (cost for RCID to operate said utility) ÷ (total consumption in base units).

Regarding the breaking of sunshine laws, it seems like they’re taking a ridiculously large view of who (“affected property owners”) needed to receive a mailed notice:

“Those most directly affected by and that would have seen and taken note of what Reedy Creek and Disney were about to do together, never had that opportunity because that notice was never sent.”

Lawson explained that the agreements substantially affect Central Florida and affect other property owners in the area.

Other property owners in the area? If they’re drawing the circle beyond the “residents” of Reedy Creek that’s not at all how that works.

It really shouldn’t surprise anyone that the board is paying an attorney to spout a bunch of nonsense for headlines. Treating the new board’s activities as if it’s anything other than sheer idiocy is a bit ridiculous until they tackle issues of real merit, so let’s look at the agenda for next week:

Resolution No. 640 - A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF THE CENTRAL FLORIDA TOURIST OVERSIGHT DISTRICT ADOPTING REGULATIONS PROHIBITING COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS AND MANDATES BY BUSINESSES WITHIN THE DISTRICT UPON THEIR CUSTOMERS OR PATRONS AND PROHIBITING COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS AND MANDATES REGARDING THE SERVICES AND OPERATIONS OF THE CENTRAL FLORIDA TOURIST OVERSIGHT DISTRICT; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY, CONFLICTS AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

Well, maybe the week after that we can take them seriously.

 

[Nick]

I’m honestly a little surprised the thread was unlocked - I get that it relates to Disney World, but all of this rapidly gets into topics that, frankly, nobody here really has much knowledge about. I mean, the first sentence of the thread was…


… which is wrong. Or all of these mythical benefits Disney gets like setting the utility rates… which basically works out to (cost for RCID to operate said utility) ÷ (total consumption in base units).

Regarding the breaking of sunshine laws, it seems like they’re taking a ridiculously large view of who (“affected property owners”) needed to receive a mailed notice:



Other property owners in the area? If they’re drawing the circle beyond the “residents” of Reedy Creek that’s not at all how that works.

It really shouldn’t surprise anyone that the board is paying an attorney to spout a bunch of nonsense for headlines. Treating the new board’s activities as if it’s anything other than sheer idiocy is a bit ridiculous until they tackle issues of real merit, so let’s look at the agenda for next week:



Well, maybe the week after that we can take them seriously.

Dude, we literally just asked to act civil. Ugh. Tone it down. I do know that My point in the first post was wrong, but I have learned since then and my thought process was a common one at the time. It's not like everyone was 100% clued into the inner workings of RCID before this all blew up.

Again, this is a thread that can easily stay open if we just keep it about RCID v. Disney but if people insist on bringing personal politics into this thread over and over, it will go locked again.

Not sure why we should have to baby you guys, but I honestly think this is a topic that can be had if people stick to the more narrow set of guidelines laid out which include:

• Keep partisan politics out of the thread
• Focus on the facts
• Focus on things found (or not found) in these board meetings
• Treat this more like a local politics issue instead of something the Governor has his hands on. What is coming out of the Governor's mouth right now doesn't mean a thing unless he actually does something
• Don't just posts because you want to post, post because you have something to add

 

[Nick]

As far as actual news goes, Disney created a new webpage on Reedy Creek that went live today. This is sort of an attempt it would seem to make them look like they're the good guy to the community and that Reedy Creek is a vital part of Central Florida.

No one's really a good guy here, let's be honest. Does Disney deserve the power they have with RCID anymore? No. Are actions being taken for the right reasons against Disney? Also no.

The Value of Disney Reedy Creek to Florida - Disney in Florida

What is the district’s impact on Florida and the Walt Disney World Resort? In 1967, the Florida State Legislature established a special district in Orange and Osceola Counties known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District (recently renamed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District)...

disneyconnect.com

 

[Jerroddragon]

Maybe they are different but Florida seems to have 100's of Special districts

https://specialdistrictreports.floridajobs.org/OfficialList/SpecialDistrictProfiles

So besides that fact the Disney said "X" to upset the Governor, I dont understand how all these other districts are fine but not Disney's