The Walt Disney Company is planning a major reboot — not with a new superhero movie series, but with a connection to Florida.
After dropping out of a fight with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year, Disney is now preparing to invest up to $17 billion in Disney World, including opening a fifth theme park.
The pending agreement was signed between Disney and the Central Florida Tourism Board and will be in effect for the next 15 years. A final approval vote is expected later this month, with the five Governor DeSantis-appointed commissioners who oversee the Disney World area signing the initial approval on Wednesday, according to the Associated Press. report.
If all goes according to plan, Disney will have approval to build a fifth major theme park at Disney World, likely to be similar in size to Animal Kingdom. Disney would also increase its retail and restaurant space by more than 20 percent and significantly expand its hotel footprint.
The agreement would mark a major comeback for Disney, which embarked on a destructive culture wars campaign against Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act, which banned radical LGBTQ indoctrination in schools.
Disney’s reckless attempt to subvert the will of Florida voters led to a barrage of lawsuits that cost the company its sovereignty over the Orlando area, a prized privilege it had enjoyed for 50 years. It also faced a storm of bad publicity and suffered immeasurable brand damage that its executives are still working to repair.
Disney recently cut budgets across a number of its media properties and laid off 7,000 employees worldwide.
As Breitbart News reported, Disney dropped its lawsuit in the so-called “Reedy Creek” dispute in March, abandoning its fight with the state of Florida. The move was widely seen as a surrender on Disney’s part as CEO Bob Iger sought to put an end to the constant negative media coverage.
As part of the new agreement, Disney will be required to award at least half of its construction projects to Florida-based companies and spend at least $10 million on affordable housing in Central Florida.
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