News Reedy Creek Improvement District and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District

[Dranth]

That's what some have been trying (very hard) to convince us of for a 100 pages or so now.

This thread is so full of misinformation and people with clear agendas it's mind boggling and pretty useless from an informational standpoint.

Of course it is a benefit. It just isn't the kind that many people are trying to make it out to be. Bottom line, it HAD to be put into place because the State of Florida did not have the resources to build out the needed infrastructure to support the project. It is also beneficial to both Disney and the counties. They don't have to spend time and money working on Disney property and Disney gets self control over how quickly and in what way those projects take place.

Should it be in place now? Maybe, maybe not. Doesn’t matter to me. What matters is the Government doing something out of spite. They could have removed this any time they wanted for plenty of reasons people would agree with. Doing it because Disney hurt their feelings isn't one of those.

 

[lazyboy97o]

When we compare this to the other area theme parks, do those parks have large public road systems instead of just private roads?

The roads through Universal Orlando Resort North Campus are public roads owned by Orlando. That is why the pedestrian bridge built to [initially] support Cabana Bay was built by the City, which caused a minor incident because of the weirdness of its financing.

 

[DisneyNittany]

Being political is fine and legal, but that doesnt exist in a vacuum and actions have consequences.

Not to praise Iger, but he had a way of just letting Disney be Disney, but it feels like Chapek has a complete inability to read a room. Their best play was when they just said they werent going to bribe politicians anymore, but they went that one extra step into a buzzsaw of their core audience of parents and government .

People keep saying this..."actions have consequences"...Yes, all actions have consequences, but those consequences SHOULD ONLY COME FROM THE PRIVATE SECTOR/MARKET.



The consequences of Disney being political should come from the consumers. Boycott Disney until they meet your acceptance level, but don't root for the State to bring all of it's power down (power that they don't, or at least should not, have) because an entity that we enjoy has a different set of values than we might have.

The beauty of a free market (or whatever we currently have) is that I have a direct say in every action, and I can reward or punish companies however I see fit (i.e. consequences of their actions), and we leave the State out of it until someone infringes on those rights of mine. I do NOT have a right to demand the State to infringe on the rights of those I disagree with, simply because I disagree with them.

 

[kong1802]

Of course it is a benefit. It just isn't the kind that many people are trying to make it out to be. Bottom line, it HAD to be put into place because the State of Florida did not have the resources to build out the needed infrastructure to support the project. It is also beneficial to both Disney and the counties. They don't have to spend time and money working on Disney property and Disney gets self control over how quickly and in what way those projects take place.

Should it be in place now? Maybe, maybe not. Doesn’t matter to me. What matters is the Government doing something out of spite. They could have removed this any time they wanted for plenty of reasons people would agree with. Doing it because Disney hurt their feelings isn't one of those.

100% this

 

[peter11435]

I’m an Orange County resident and I’m upset by this. I hope those numbers aren’t accurate tho. I’m so confused, because why wouldn’t Orange County just not take the tax money that was being paid to reedy creek?

If your state decides to eliminate state income taxes do you think the IRS should be able to just increase your taxes by that amount?

 

[AdventureHasAName]

I’m an Orange County resident and I’m upset by this. I hope those numbers aren’t accurate tho. I’m so confused, because why wouldn’t Orange County just not take the tax money that was being paid to reedy creek?

They will.

 

[lazyboy97o]

So then your point that RCID is not a tax break is irrelevant. Either it is a benefit or it is not. If it is not a benefit, then it's not "punishment" to take it away (and therefore not possibly a violation of free speech). If it is a benefit, then the question is whether or not the state's action is an infringement on the 1st Amendment.

The type of benefit is absolutely relevant relevant because it changes how people evaluate the benefit. If you have to misrepresent to make your point then you don’t have a strong point.

 

[Dranth]

Disney will loose in court on this one because the Reedy Creek Act was granted before the state constitution was established. As a Disney shareholder I am furious that they waded into this whole mess.

Why? The further it drops the more you can buy at a nice discount and the quicker Bob C. is out of there. Take advantage of panic sellers every time if you believe in a company.

 

[peter11435]

They will.

You keep saying this. Doesn’t make it true

 

[the_rich]

They will.

They won't. Its not a tax that will carry over. This has been said numerous times already.

 

[ctrlaltdel]

People keep saying this..."actions have consequences"...Yes, all actions have consequences, but those consequences SHOULD ONLY COME FROM THE PRIVATE SECTOR/MARKET.



The consequences of Disney being political should come from the consumers. Boycott Disney until they meet your acceptance level, but don't root for the State to bring all of it's power down (power that they don't, or at least should not, have) because an entity that we enjoy has a different set of values that we might have.

The beauty of a free market (or whatever we currently have) is that I have a direct say in every action, and I can reward or punish companies however I see fit (i.e. consequences of their actions), and we leave the State out of it until someone infringes on those rights of mine. I do NOT have a right to demand the state to infringe on the rights of those I disagree with, simply because I disagree with them.

Great post. I'm on the opposite side of the political spectrum but wholeheartedly agree on your points. This is just bad government. Would be if it was the opposite party doing it (I always opposed Dem leaders going after Chick-fil-a for this very reason). Especially since the work that RCID does is all mundane, necessary infrastructure work that local government typically does, it really is a foolish and not well-thought out decision.

 

[AdventureHasAName]

The type of benefit is absolutely relevant relevant because it changes how people evaluate the benefit. If you have to misrepresent to make your point then you don’t have a strong point.

I didn't misrepresent anything and I resent that you insinuated I did. Either Florida can remove RCID or it cannot. If RCID is not a "benefit" to Disney, then it cannot possibly be a 1st Amendment-infringing "punishment" to remove RCID. So the question remains, does Disney receive a benefit from the existence of RCID?

The answer of course, is that it is a benefit to them. If it was a not a benefit to the company, Disney would have spent the last 50 years trying to get rid of it themselves. This whole suggestion that Disney does not benefit from RCID is absurd.

 

[AdventureHasAName]

You keep saying this. Doesn’t make it true

What incentive could Orange County officials possibly have not to?

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

I didn't misrepresent anything and I resent that you insinuated I did. Either Florida can remove RCID or it cannot. If RCID is not a "benefit" to Disney, then it cannot possibly be a 1st Amendment-infringing "punishment" to remove RCID. So the question remains, does Disney receive a benefit from the existence of RCID?

The answer of course, is that it is a benefit to them. If it was a not a benefit to the company, Disney would have spent the last 50 years trying to get rid of it themselves. This whole suggestion that Disney does not benefit from RCID is absurd.

It seems apparent that the arrangement is mutually beneficial.

Disney has the ability to control building and maintenance on their terms and schedule, and takes on more taxes and expenditures in order to have that ability.

By ending this, Florida is giving Disney a financial windfall in exchange for taking back infrastructure control. Since Disney by all accounts handles infrastructure extremely well, Florida does not appear to gain from this reversal beyond revenge.

 

[JusticeDisney]

In no way is Florida legislators denying Disney their first amendment right, in no way is the Florida legislature impeding their ability to do business. Tell me how Disney's free speech is being stifled

Like I said, you don’t understand this legally. The government is retaliating for statements made. That is not permissible.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I didn't misrepresent anything and I resent that you insinuated I did. Either Florida can remove RCID or it cannot. If RCID is not a "benefit" to Disney, then it cannot possibly be a 1st Amendment-infringing "punishment" to remove RCID. So the question remains, does Disney receive a benefit from the existence of RCID?

The answer of course, is that it is a benefit to them. If it was a not a benefit to the company, Disney would have spent the last 50 years trying to get rid of it themselves. This whole suggestion that Disney does not benefit from RCID is absurd.

You have repeatedly claimed the District provides tax benefits, which it does not. You have exaggerated and misrepresented the regulatory benefits the District provides. If you don’t care about the specific types of benefits you would not insist on continuing to claim there are tax and regulatory benefits that don’t actually exist.

Nobody has claimed there are no benefits derived from the District, constantly repeating this is another misrepresentation.

 

[peter11435]

What incentive could Orange County officials possibly have not to?

It’s not about their desire to do it or not. It’s their legal authority to do so.

 

[lazyboy97o]

What incentive could Orange County officials possibly have not to?

They are not entirely in control of the process.

 

[willtravel]

Boy there's a lot of lawyers on this site.....

 

[mmascari]

This whole suggestion that Disney does not benefit from RCID is absurd.

Literally nobody in this thread has said that RCID isn't a benefit to Disney except for people trying to say that's what others are stating, like this post.

What everyone is saying is that RCID isn't a TAX benefit to Disney. That it's not some benefit that avoids paying taxes to someone else. Also that it's not not a benefit that avoids building codes, restrictions, or other required construction items (largely).

The benefit is completely about control, scheduling, and what get's done. This is still a huge benefit to the company.

* The "largely" above is because I don't know if RCID needs to comply with public comment type scenarios. Or course, if the public comments are limited to residents of the district, then it doesn't really matter one way or the other. Meaning, Disney doesn't need to go to some public meeting and lobby about why the roads department should prioritize updates to World Drive, and listen to others oppose why RCID should not issue bonds to finance that construction. I mean, they may still need those public meetings, but if the only people allowed are residents, it's a small crowd. Contrast that with an Orange County public meeting where the sequence of that work is being debated against updating the intersections around the mall, airport, or Ikea.