Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Board transferred all its power to Disney shortly before DeSantis' appointees took over
HotAir ^ | March 29, 2023 | JOHN SEXTON

Posted on 03/30/2023 8:14:38 AM PDT by SoConPubbie

So it looks like the battle between Gov. DeSantis and Disney isn’t over yet. In January a DeSantis spokesperson announced that “The corporate kingdom has come to an end.” But the new board members weren’t actually in place until the end of February after DeSantis signed a law to put them there.

Capping a year-long feud with one of the state’s largest employers, DeSantis signed into law a bill officially granting a new state-appointed board the responsibilities of Disney’s Reedy Creek Improvement District and named a slate of conservative leaders.

The newly appointed members of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District include Bridget Ziegler, a vocal proponent of DeSantis’s education policies, including the Parental Rights in Education bill dubbed by critics as the “don’t say gay” law that Disney leaders opposed last year. Also named to the board: Ron Peri, who heads the Gathering USA, a Christian ministry, and three attorneys, including the president of the Federalist Society’s Orlando chapter.

And it turns out that during the interim, the old Disney-controlled board handed all its actual power over to Disney in perpetuity leaving the new DeSantis’ appointed board with almost no power.

Ahead of an expected state takeover, the Walt Disney Co. quietly pushed through the pact and restrictive covenants that would tie the hands of future board members for decades, according to a legal presentation by the district’s lawyers on Wednesday…

The previous board, which was known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District and controlled by Disney, approved the agreement on Feb. 8, the day before the Florida House voted to put the governor in charge.

Board members held a public meeting that day but spent little time discussing the document before unanimously approving it in a brief meeting.

Disney released a statement saying, “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.” But new board member Ron Peri suggested the agreements seemed dubious.

Peri described the timetable outlined in the developer agreement between Disney and the Reedy Creek board, which was put into effect on Feb. 8.

“I’m going to read to the term of this restrictive covenant. ‘This declaration shall continue in effect until 21 years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III, King of England, living as of the date of this declaration,’” Peri said. “So, I mean, I don’t know what else to say. I think these documents are void ab initio, I think they were an extremely aggressive overreach, and I’m very disappointed that they’re here.”

I’m not an attorney but void ab initio is a legaleze way of saying the agreement may be void from the start. Finally, the Governor’s office also released a statement:

The Executive Office of the Governor is aware of Disney’s last-ditch efforts to execute contracts just before ratifying the new law that transfers rights and authorities from the former Reedy Creek Improvement District to Disney. An initial review suggests these agreements may have significant legal infirmities that would render the contracts void as a matter of law. We are pleased the new Governor-appointed board retained multiple financial and legal firms to conduct audits and investigate Disney’s past behavior.

So I guess this will be fought out in the courts where I suspect Disney has a small army of lawyers to make their case that this is legal. I guess we’ll have to wait and see what the courts say about it.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: desantis; desantisexposed; desantisvsdisney; disney; robdesantis; woke
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041 next last

1 posted on 03/30/2023 8:14:38 AM PDT by SoConPubbie
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie

Sounds like DeSantis was too busy figuring out how to attack Trump and flip his position on Ukraine to notice what was going on in his backyard...or perhaps quietly supported this outcome?


2 posted on 03/30/2023 8:19:36 AM PDT by BobL
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie

Isn’t this Government takeover? Why is DeSantis doing this?

Normally we would disagree with something like this.


3 posted on 03/30/2023 8:19:47 AM PDT by Mr. K (No consequence of repealing Obamacare is worse than Obamacare)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BobL

At least DeSantis is DOING something. Where has Trump been - action, not just giving speeches? What did Trump do via the Department of Education 2017-2020?


4 posted on 03/30/2023 8:22:19 AM PDT by Mr Rogers (We're a nation of feelings, not thoughts.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Mr. K

No, the government is not taking over. The government is ending a sweetheart deal that Fagney operated under for decades and never should have received.


5 posted on 03/30/2023 8:22:47 AM PDT by Fai Mao (Starve the beast and steal its food!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie
Meh…I view this as no different than a person transferring their assets after having been drunk and running over an innocent pedestrian. It won't stand.
6 posted on 03/30/2023 8:23:28 AM PDT by liberalh8ter (The only difference between flash mob 'urban yutes' and U.S. politicians is the hoodies.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BobL

“DeSantis was too busy figuring out how to attack Trump”

Cite the “attacks” that DeSantis is launching towards Trump.

The “traffic” seems one way to me - Trump attacking DeSantis.


7 posted on 03/30/2023 8:28:57 AM PDT by LeonardFMason
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie
Ahead of an expected state takeover, the Walt Disney Co. quietly pushed through the pact and restrictive covenants that would tie the hands of future board members for decades,

One would assume that state law trumps local board decrees.

Moreover "legislative entrenchment" is a kind of logical fallacy that no court recognizes. No one can bind a constitutionally elected legislature from taking any future action simply by decree. Moreover, Reedy Creek isn't even a law-making body, its an administrative one.

Its a childish manuever which a court should slap-down immediately. Of course, depends on if its a leftist/activist judge, of course.....

8 posted on 03/30/2023 8:32:14 AM PDT by PGR88
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: LeonardFMason

Anything other than absolute worship of Trump as the Lord’s anointed and the only savior of America *is* an attack on him.
/s


9 posted on 03/30/2023 8:32:27 AM PDT by Republican in occupied CA (I will not give up on my native State! Here I was born, here I fight and die!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: BobL

Do you have any idea how a law is passed?


10 posted on 03/30/2023 8:32:29 AM PDT by newzjunkey (We need a better Trump than Trump in 2024)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie

I wrote on FB that Disney has been trying to get rid of white people and they answered back something like, ‘where’? ‘no one else finds anything on this’ but it’s all over how they are redoing all their movies with people that are other than white. How can people not see what Disney is doing and is the new guy going to continue on in the same vein.


11 posted on 03/30/2023 8:33:25 AM PDT by Beowulf9
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie

“This declaration shall continue in effect until 21 years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III, King of England, living as of the date of this declaration.”

Classic.

The question can then be revisited in 100 to 110 years.


12 posted on 03/30/2023 8:33:32 AM PDT by Round Earther
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mr. K

Disney was basically its own Government with special considerations and exemptions. DeSantis was ending that sweetheart deal.


13 posted on 03/30/2023 8:33:51 AM PDT by newzjunkey (We need a better Trump than Trump in 2024)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie

Eff Disney.

Walt must be turning over in his grave.

Liberalism destroys everything it touches. It’s touching so much, I guess it will all be destroyed eventually.


14 posted on 03/30/2023 8:35:23 AM PDT by FamiliarFace (I got my own way of livin' But everything gets done With a southern accent Where I come from. TP)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie

Screwed by Disney….


15 posted on 03/30/2023 8:36:25 AM PDT by ptsal (Vote R.E.D. >>>Remove Every Democrat ***)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ptsal

“Screwed by Disney….”

DeSantis will fix this right at the end of his 25th consecutive term as Governor of Florida.


16 posted on 03/30/2023 8:44:34 AM PDT by Round Earther
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: Mr. K
In a word, no. The Reedy Creek Improvement District was a special independent state government entity created by state statute at Disney's behest when the Orlando theme park was developed in the mid-1960s. Until recently, the arrangement was widely criticized by good government types.

In essence, the District was given wide zoning powers and the power to issue bonds in order to build roads and utilities and provide government services from planning and permitting to infrastructure and fire service. With a board composed of Disney employees, retirees, and Disney allies, the District was a captive of Disney and loyal to its interests. Not only did the District facilitate Disney's development, but it also discriminated against other property owners in the area so as to make them subservient to Disney.

By statute, the new board is little different in what it can do but is composed of DeSantis appointees instead of being a captive of Disney. If permitted to function normally, that would endanger Disney's iron grip over both its own property and that of nearby property owners. So, in its closing days, the Disney controlled board executed an agreement with Disney giving away its governmental powers to Disney.

That would be as if on the way out of office, Donald Trump had executed an agreement conferring the powers of the presidency on himself as former President and making Biden a figurehead. Trump could not do that and neither can Disney do the equivalent.

17 posted on 03/30/2023 8:49:07 AM PDT by Rockingham
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: newzjunkey; Mr. K
Disney was basically its own Government with special considerations and exemptions. DeSantis was ending that sweetheart deal.

So after the Reedy Creek repeal Disney is now just another company in the counties of Orange and Osceola?

Looks like to me that's not the case.

They are replacing the independent Disney district with a state run board.

18 posted on 03/30/2023 8:52:36 AM PDT by FreeReign
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: SoConPubbie

Fine. Set up toll booths on every road leading into The House of Mouse and charge a $100 per person toll.

It’s for the children and battling climate change, don’t cha know.

EC


19 posted on 03/30/2023 8:52:49 AM PDT by Ex-Con777
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Rockingham
By statute, the new board is little different in what it can do but is composed of DeSantis appointees instead of being a captive of Disney.

Why have a separate district and state appointed board?

20 posted on 03/30/2023 8:56:00 AM PDT by FreeReign
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson