Amid Gov. Ron DeSantis’ (R-FL) feud with Disney, the company has now pulled its proposed $1 billion development investment, citing “changing business conditions.”
“In a memo sent to Disney employees, Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, said that the company isn’t moving forward with its plans to build a new Disney campus in Lake Nona. The Lake Nona complex would have included several buildings employing 2,000 Disney workers that would have been relocated from California to Florida,” reported CBS News.
In a recent investor conference call with CEO Bob Iger, he said regarding Florida’s laws, “Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes, or not?”
The governor responded to the news that the company would not go forward with its Lake Nona project, “Nothing ever came of the project, and the state was unsure whether it would come to fruition,” adding, “Given the company’s financial straits, falling market cap and declining stock price, it is unsurprising that they would restructure their business operations and cancel unsuccessful ventures.”
Currently, the company is battling it out with DeSantis in court over a recent move he signed stripping it of its ability to self-govern via the Reedy Creek Improvement District. All seats on the oversight board have been replaced with DeSantis picks.