I feel sad.
I understand all of the political winds (of left and right) at play here. I understand the risks of giving special consideration to one entity, as Disney had with Reedy Creek.
But I also understand what they did with it — and how over the years there was a mutually respectful and beneficial relationship between Florida and the Disney organization that, while not perfect, worked together (or in trust) to allow and achieve great new things — many of which actually did achieve many of Walt’s objectives with urban planning and innovation — that would not have been as likely or possible without the special case that Disney had in Florida.
The infrastructure is top-notch and often innovative in a way that in other localities just would get mired down in red tape or not done — and demonstrates the unique success of this special project in a way that always inspired me. Examples that inspired me include: the monorail as actual municipal transportation (not just a ride), the water bridge near the contemporary, the pneumatic trash system, the all-fiber-optic telecommunications system that was the nation’s first, the Skyliner as actual transportation, the canal system, building innovations and hurricane readiness, and even the whimsical overlay on the Reedy Creek Fire Department buildings that support a crew that was training with and actively supporting firefighters from around the state during the wildfires outside of their district.
My point is that the Reedy Creek Development District may have been a questionable proposition — but it allowed both Disney and Florida to benefit and bring great things to the world — all of which was built on trust and adults working together with trust. I am sad to see that come crashing down in what to me amounts to grandstanding on both sides. There is collateral damage here that undermines what, to me, was the innovation, cooperation, and idea generation that Walt Disney World represented in its ideals — even if, as with everything, there are problems to work out. That, in itself, is what is missing — a willingness to work together and hear one another to achieve great things.
I am sad.
