Central Florida Tourism Oversight District cancels board meeting amid mounting issues for the DeSantis-appointed administrators

Dec 11, 2023 in "Reedy Creek Improvement District"

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Posted: Monday December 11, 2023 6:35pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

This week's planned board meeting of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District on December 13 has been canceled.

A CFTOD meeting was planned for December 13 but has now been cancelled

CFTOD has yet to give a reason for the cancellation, but it comes alongside a particularly chaotic time for the Ron DeSantis-appointed board of supervisors.

Supervisor Bridget Ziegler's future on the board is in significant doubt amid abuse allegations against her husband, Christian Ziegler. Bridget Ziegler, the author of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill, crusades against the LGBTQ+ community but allegedly told police she had relations with a woman alongside her husband. Opposition to Christain Ziegler and Bridget Ziegler continuing in Florida's politics is mounting, and it remains to be seen if her position at CFTOD will be vacated. The CFTOD website currently lists her position on the board remains until 2/26/25.

This week also marks the start of court hearings in Disney's lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board.

Disney claims in its lawsuit filed in a federal court that there has been "A targeted campaign of government retaliation-orchestrated at every step by Governor DeSantis as punishment for Disney's protected speech now threatens Disney's business operations, jeopardizes its economic future in the region, and violates its constitutional rights."

Ron DeSantis and the CFTOD filed a motion to dismiss the case, which will be heard on December 12, just a day before the now-cancelled December 13 board meeting.

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castlecake2.07 days ago

Yes

Stripes7 days ago

Has Disney/CFTOD continued to replace the purple direction signage with the new blue color scheme since CFTOD took over?

mkt7 days ago

You're right. The new document will be different. It will be "different" in the way that Chris Gaines was "different" from Garth Brooks or how the drummer from Nirvana is "different" from the singer of the Foo Fighters.

Unbanshee7 days ago

Both are effectively picked by the Governor, just not technically. Look no further than the communications "strategy" with the replacement of Gilzean of the Governor's office getting out ahead of every single step of the process

lazyboy97o8 days ago

The settlement acknowledged the “need” to change the comprehensive plan, which undermines this idea. So too does the lack of an agreement, as the 2032 Comprehensive Plan wasn’t that different than the again in force 2020 Comprehensive Plan.

Brian8 days ago

That's understandable for sure. I just felt inclined to make the distinction due to the ongoing conversation, as the district administrator is selected by the board, while the board is selected by the governor.

mkt8 days ago

The new agreement will be functionally the same as the one Disney was sued over.

pdude818 days ago

You're right. This has been going on so long I just lumped all the antagonists together.

Brian8 days ago

Not to nitpick, but Gilzean was district administrator, not a board member.

pdude818 days ago

A bigger risk than keeping Garcia and Gilzean on the board as active disruptors? I don't agree with their decision to stall the federal lawsuit, but I understand why they saw the status quo as a risk to growth over the next few years.

lazyboy97o8 days ago

You don’t think dropping your bargaining power in the middle is the best strategy in a negotiation?

flynnibus8 days ago

Again… we know nothing except both sides have shown signs of positive attitude and certainty of successful outcomes. What does that mean? None if us know. All we can speculate is… they know a lot more than they have said publicly… and obvious things like "desantis is not perpetual…" were clearly obvious to them when they made these choices.

UNCgolf8 days ago

That seems wildly optimistic.

flynnibus8 days ago

“Right now…” Yes, we all know this. But again, we don’t know what back room deal they have setup. Who knows… it could even include new legislation promises… Or Disney is just rolling with the hand they are dealt… maybe they have accepted that the time to sunset their advantages of rcid is here… none of us can tell what their true intentions are right now.