Are Disney and DeSantis making up? Both look ready to work together

Reedy Creek in spotlight

As the dispute escalated, attention shifted to a wonky topic: the Reedy Creek Improvement District. The Florida Legislature created that district in 1967 to oversee government services for Disney World. For decades, Disney controlled the district by electing its five board members. It has been likened to a “Vatican with mouse ears,” a quasi-private government controlled by Disney.

That arrangement was upended last year when state lawmakers gave the governor the power to appoint the members and changed Reedy Creek’s name to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. DeSantis removed the Disney loyalists from the board and replaced them with Republican allies.

But when the new board members took over, they discovered their Disney-friendly predecessors approved agreements limiting the new board’s authority over development.

That set off a legal battle. Disney sued DeSantis and state officials in federal court accusing them of political retaliation for opposing the law. Then the new DeSantis-backed oversight board sued in state court and asked a judge to declare the development agreements tying its hands void.

Disney suffered a major setback in January when a federal judge dismissed the federal suit. Then the company settled the state lawsuits on Wednesday, agreeing the development agreements would be null and void and giving DeSantis another legal victory.

Caught in the dispute were about 400 government employees working for the Disney World special district, which span from firefighters to clerks. Dozens resigned or retired during the transition. In exit surveys, some employees attributed their decision to a toxic political climate.

News of a settlement was well-received, said Jon Shirey, president of the Reedy Creek Professional Firefighters, a union that represents about 200 district employees.

“We’re very happy to hear the news of the lawsuits being dropped and excited about the prospects of Disney and the district working together collaboratively,” he said.