Walt Disney pulls out of investing $1 billion in Florida amid row with governor; understand

[ad_1]

The company suspended the construction of a complex in Orlando, Florida, in the midst of a legal dispute with Republican Ron DeSantis. Walt Disney World, Fla., driveway John Raoux/AP Photo Media and entertainment giant Walt Disney has pulled out of construction on a nearly $1 billion office complex in Orlando, Fla., amid legal wrangles with the state governor Ron DeSantis informed the international press. In an email sent to employees, the company said it was scrapping plans to move 2,000 jobs to Florida because of “changing business conditions” in the state. According to the Orlando Sentinel newspaper, the main city, the head of Disney parks, Josh D’Amaro, said that “license changes” made the company reconsider the investment idea. The company’s plan was to relocate employees, including “Imagineers” (responsible for theme park rides) to the new campus in Lake Nona, which is about 30 kilometers from the main parks in the city. The estimate was that Disney would invest up to US$ 864 million in the project. “Given the considerable changes that have taken place since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions, we have decided not to move forward with construction of the campus,” wrote D’Amaro. “This was not an easy decision to make, but I believe it is the right one.” Last week, Disney Chairman Bob Iger publicly questioned Florida’s interest in the company’s continued investment. On a call with investors to discuss quarterly results, he noted that the company employed more than 75,000 people in the state, in addition to attracting millions of visitors each year to Walt Disney World. The executive also said, according to Reuters, that he had plans to invest US$ 17 billion to expand the resort over the next decade. “Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people and pay more taxes or not?” he asked. The move is a new chapter in the clash between the company and the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, which has been going on for more than a year. The decision still comes amid the recent layoffs announced by the company. What gave rise to the conflict? Disney’s Magic Kingdom park, in a January 2019 photo. John Raoux/ AP The friction between the company and the Republican politician stems from a company criticism of a Florida education law, which limits instruction in the classroom about gender identity and sexual orientation. The struggle escalated and resulted in more than a year of discussions about a special tax district (territory within the state) that encompasses the Disney World parks. Since then, according to the US newspaper “The New York Times”, Florida legislators have applied hostile measures to the company – which is the state’s largest tax payer. In February, the paper says, those legislators ended Disney’s longstanding ability to “self-govern” its 25,000-acre resort as if it were a county, giving DeSantis control over the government services of that county. territory. The new administrators then identified that the board, when still controlled by Disney, had approved development contracts that displeased the new management. The scenario resulted in a series of lawsuits, in an effort by the new directors to annul the agreements signed in the previous management. In this context, according to “The New York Times”, Disney is suing DeSantis and his allies in federal court, while those appointed by the governor’s fiscal district are trying to make an offensive through lawsuits in state court.

[ad_2]

Source link