Disney has abandoned plans for its massive $1 billion campus in Lake Nona Florida as a result of the continued feud with Governor Ron DeSantis.
In an email to employees today, Disney Parks Chairman Josh D'Amaro cited "changing business conditions" as a reason for canceling the Lake Nona project.
D'Amaro originally announced the new regional campus in July 2021 that was planned to serve as a Central Florida regional hub for the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment. At that time, he said "Expanding our already significant DPEP footprint in Florida makes sense. In addition to Florida's business-friendly climate, this new regional campus gives us the opportunity to consolidate our teams and be more collaborative and impactful both from a creative and operational standpoint."
Located in Lake Nona, the new campus was planned to complement Disney's operations in Southern California and its regional hub in the New York City area and be home to more than 2000 Cast, Imagineers and employees. The relocation to Florida was originally planned to be operational by the end of 2022 before being delayed, and has been in the planning stages since 2019.
In a July 2021 memo to staff, D'Amaro said, "While we are still determining exactly which of our team members will be based there, we expect that most Southern California-based DPEP professional roles that are not fully dedicated to the Disneyland Resort or, in some cases, the international parks business, will be asked to relocate to this new Florida campus."
Many Disney employees, particularly within Disney's creative Imagineering department, chose to leave the company rather than relocate to Florida. It remains to be seen if any of those who left will be able to return.
Speaking at a recent investor earnings call, Disney CEO Bob Iger referred to previously announced plans to spend more than $17 billion at Walt Disney World in Florida over the next 10 years and said, "We have a number of other growth and expansion opportunities at our parks and we are closely evaluating where it makes the most sense to direct future investments."
Bob's actions today appear to be a clear indication that DeSantis' targeted retaliation against Disney will impact the company's plans in Florida. Later in that same call, Iger shared more on the battle with DeSantis and asks if Florida wants Disney to 'invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes, or not?'
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