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

[Sirwalterraleigh]

. As I feel the benefits to FL, Orange & Osceola counties far outweigh any of this partisan nonsense about Disneys tax bill.

I could see the commissioners from those counties actually showing up and actually saying that in court.

Because there is no debate. There is no dispute as to how central Florida was built.

But remember who they don’t vote for as well?….there’s always that too.

 

[MagicHappens1971]

I could see the commissioners from those counties actually showing up and actually saying that in court.

Because there is no debate. There is no dispute as to how central Florida was built.

But remember who they don’t vote for as well?….there’s always that too.

Time will tell. As a Floridian I’m considering just getting out of this crazy state

 

[lentesta]

Hell, if they had bought the land after 1973…it would have been a Superfund site. I’m not kidding.

Okay, I need to hear this story.

 

[Smiley/OCD]

Yeah I agree with @ParentsOf4 that he definitely wanted this, but I also agree with you that it may not actually be very good for him at all. If he wins in court I guess he can campaign on it, but if he loses or the most likely scenario that the case is still pending come primary time then it won’t be a positive for him.

If he gets continuous reports of his side not doing well, he will instruct his team to drag out the proceedings until after the primary’s (assuming he does run) so the loss won’t get rendered until it’s too late.

 

[lentesta]

Sometimes it’s ok to be an idiot in silence without proving it to everyone else

The corporate version of this phrase is "Thank you for that input." for you kids going out to intern this summer.

 

[MagicHappens1971]

If he gets continuous reports of his side not doing well, he will instruct his team to drag out the proceedings until after the primary’s (assuming he does run) so the loss won’t get rendered until it’s too late.

This is going to be litigated in Federal court, no? Either way the defense can’t just stall without reason.

 

[GBAB1973]

A number of 1A attorneys weigh in that they feel Disney has a very strong case.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/27/media/ron-desantis-disney-reliable-sources/index.html

So when he was pay the same taxes as everyone else does that mean he's going to strip all corporations and property owners of tax breaks so they all are on equal footing?

At the end of the day, this wasn't about taxes. DeSantis and his big mouth and his minions and their big mouths in the legislature made it clear this was done because they spoke out against their bill. Trying to plant flowers on the ground you just salted the hell out of isn't going to play well in court like Ginsberg said. You can't retroactively claim this was to make Disney pay their fair share. And as noted, Disney pays over $1B in taxes annually to the counties, state, etc.

 

[GimpYancIent]

Could Disney (WDW) have been a County rather than have a District? If Disney had been able to purchase more land, size matters? Freedom of the press blew it for Disney: "It was a very well-kept secret until late October 1965, when the Orlando Sentinel published a headline saying that the mystery industry buying up the land was Disney! The morning after this headline appeared, the governor of Florida, with the permission of the Disney company, confirmed that it was, indeed, the Disney Company that bought the land."

 

[MagicHappens1971]

Could Disney (WDW) have been a County rather than have a District? If Disney had been able to purchase more land, size matters? Freedom of the press blew it for Disney: "It was a very well-kept secret until late October 1965, when the Orlando Sentinel published a headline saying that the mystery industry buying up the land was Disney! The morning after this headline appeared, the governor of Florida, with the permission of the Disney company, confirmed that it was, indeed, the Disney Company that bought the land."

Is this an excerpt from something?

I can’t see why they would’ve made WDW it’s own county anyway, but it’s not like it’s tiny. It’s the same size as Manhattan and San Francisco.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Even so, Disneys pays nearly 88% of RCIDs taxes, so their taxes paid for those garages. The technicalities come down to the fact that really municipal bonds paid for those garages and a private company can’t take out municipal bonds, but I digress. As I feel the benefits to FL, Orange & Osceola counties far outweigh any of this partisan nonsense about Disneys tax bill.

True, by having the RCID, Disney got access to being able to produce municipal bonds as a way to have cheap and readily accessible loans. An advantage that other private companies don't have... BUT...

Let's say SeaWorld says to Orange County: "We need new roads with dedicated bus lanes to support the boom in our business, and since you're the county, you're responsible for providing such infrastructure to a big taxpayer like us."

Then Orange County says: "But our budget is really tight and we can't afford it. And if we take out municipal bonds to bankroll the project, we still won't have enough in our budget to pay back those bonds."

Then SeaWorld says, "Hmmm... how about we pay those bonds over time by paying you a 'fee' for those roads that equals the cost of those bonds over time?"

Then Orange County can say, "OK!"

IOW, a private company can make a deal with their county/municipality for extra service if they pay for it, and the county/municipality can fund it with municipal bonds which is being paid off by the private company's "fees" for that extra service.

Right now Universal is paying extra to the county (or town?) for their new roads with dedicated bus lanes for Epic Universe. And if they wanted to, Orange County can fund it with municipal bonds, which will be paid off with the extra fees it's charging EU for the roads.

 

[castlecake2.0]

Inconsistent enforcement of the rules

They get medical exemptions for them… no further comment

 

[Disstevefan1]

Could Disney (WDW) have been a County rather than have a District? If Disney had been able to purchase more land, size matters? Freedom of the press blew it for Disney: "It was a very well-kept secret until late October 1965, when the Orlando Sentinel published a headline saying that the mystery industry buying up the land was Disney! The morning after this headline appeared, the governor of Florida, with the permission of the Disney company, confirmed that it was, indeed, the Disney Company that bought the land."

I think Disney knew the secret would get out, they just tried to keep the secret as long as possible to be able to purchase land at the going rate before the secret got out.

 

[MagicHappens1971]

True, by having the RCID, Disney got access to being able to produce municipal bonds as a way to have cheap and readily accessible loans. An advantage that other private companies don't have... BUT...

Let's say SeaWorld says to Orange County: "We need new roads with dedicated bus lanes to support the boom in our business, and since you're the county, you're responsible for providing such infrastructure to a big taxpayer like us."

Then Orange County says: "But our budget is really tight and we can't afford it. And if we take out municipal bonds to bankroll the project, we still won't have enough in our budget to pay back those bonds."

Then SeaWorld says, "Hmmm... how about we pay those bonds over time by paying you a 'fee' for those roads that equals the cost of those bonds over time?"

Then Orange County can say, "OK!"

IOW, a private company can make a deal with their county/municipality for extra service if they pay for it, and the county/municipality can fund it with municipal bonds which is being paid off by the private company's "fees" for that extra service.

Right now Universal is paying extra to the county (or town?) for their new roads with dedicated bus lanes for Epic Universe. And if they wanted to, Orange County can fund it with municipal bonds, which will be paid off with the extra fees it's charging EU for the roads.

Oh yeah. This is all really semantics and optics. But also, I think that EU/Uni deal with Orange County actually sits within a special district.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Props to Disney for having guts, and I didn't realize it also extended to large strollers, which was also an issue. Great!

They have no guts.

The images you shared are referring to May 1, 2019. Disney allegedly banned these stroller wagons four years ago and they haven't enforced it worth a darn.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Okay, I need to hear this story.

You are probably aware that a large portion of the property…I believe the “irlo Bronson tract” was being used as an industrial fertilizer farm in addition to cow pastures…

This was the mid 20th century…so “fertilizer” was some pretty nasty stuff (as it is still)…phosphorus and nitrates in batch quantities. Not good…for any land and anything.

So two laws were passed in 1973 that tie into this story…
NESHAPS (the asbestos/fiberglass/dust one)
And RCRA - resource conservation recovery act….that’s the industrial contamination/cleanup one…

Those two laws created their own agency…the US Environmental Protection Agency.

RCRA was the basis for SUPERFUND…the federal cleanup of toxic sites. Brownfields and Greyfields.

am I saying that wdw is built at least partially on what would have been a toxic dump by law after 1973?
Why yes I am.

So…that’s even more evidence of the need for RCID and Disney in Florida. They did something the state NEVER could have paid for before it’s time: a complete environmental rehab.

Those men…Walt’s men…were amazing…lest we forget

 

[mkt]

They get medical exemptions for them… no further comment

I'm aware of the blue tags. I didn't see a single one with a blue tag in the park.

 

[Polkadotdress]

Time will tell. As a Floridian I’m considering just getting out of this crazy state

Same...

 

[MagicHappens1971]

They have no guts.

The images you shared are referring to May 1, 2019. Disney allegedly banned these stroller wagons four years ago and they haven't enforced it worth a darn.

They are being enforced, but you can get a medical exemption…

 

[GBAB1973]

Even so, Disneys pays nearly 88% of RCIDs taxes, so their taxes paid for those garages. The technicalities come down to the fact that really municipal bonds paid for those garages and a private company can’t take out municipal bonds, but I digress. As I feel the benefits to FL, Orange & Osceola counties far outweigh any of this partisan nonsense about Disneys tax bill.

And I get it. Disney isn't exactly your squeaky clean company and they are going to take advantage of any loophole they can find or grease the right palm to get something they want but that's not unique to Disney and it's certainly not unique to most large corporations operating in Florida.

But the reality is, without Disney and their investment decaded ago, that are of Florida would't even come close to looking like it does now. The amount of economic growth in that area outside the RCID due to Disney is immense. And I am not saying that to suggest you just bow down at the foot of Disney, but it is still a statement of fact............. Disney has singlehandedly transformed that part of Florida for the better.

 

[MagicHappens1971]

And I get it. Disney isn't exactly your squeaky clean company and they are going to take advantage of any loophole they can find or grease the right palm to get something they want but that's not unique to Disney and it's certainly not unique to most large corporations operating in Florida.

But the reality is, without Disney and their investment decaded ago, that are of Florida would't even come close to looking like it does now. The amount of economic growth in that area outside the RCID due to Disney is immense. And I am not saying that to suggest you just bow down at the foot of Disney, but it is still a statement of fact............. Disney has singlehandedly transformed that part of Florida for the better.

Leaving Disney alone wouldn’t have been “bowing down”, I’m not sure if that’s what you meant. But Disney didn’t do anything wrong, they were operating as they were for the past half a century, and then voiced an opinion. Orlando would be nothing without Disney & RCID.