May 18 (UPI) — The Walt Disney Co. will approve plans to build a large new campus near Orlando, Florida, according to an internal memo.
It makes no mention of the entertainment company’s ongoing fight with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, which has intensified since the entertainment giant criticized the governor’s anti-LGBTQ policies and DeSantis responded by seeking to take the progress council that governs the Walt Disney World theme park. near to orlando
In February, the governor signed the law granting him the Reedy Creek Development District, which was renamed the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District and populated through DeSantis’ appointees.
In 2021, Disney announced plans to build a new main campus in the city’s planned Nona Lake neighborhood, with an estimated charge of $1 billion. Construction had not yet begun.
Disney paid $46. 4 million for the 58-acre site it planned for the campus, which would have housed Disney’s artistic team, Imagineers and other workers in jobs that Disney said had an average annual salary of about $120,000.
“Given the significant adjustments that have occurred since the announcement of this project, adding new control and transforming business conditions, we do not have to continue with the campus structure,” Disney Parks President Josh D’Amaro said in the internal memo to employees. .
“It was not an easy decision to make, but I think it is the right one. As a result, we will no longer ask our workers to move. For those who have already moved, we will communicate their situation, adding the option to delay it. “
Disney has recently employed about 75,000 people in Florida, where it operates four theme parks and two water parks.
The resolution was not well received by some Orlando-area lawmakers, with many blaming DeSantis for Disney’s resolution.
DeSantis engaged in a public back-and-forth with Disney after passing Florida’s so-called “don’t say gay” law, which prohibits talking about sexual orientation or gender in class.
California is quick to respond to Thursday’s announcement.
“Disney, the door is open to bring those jobs back to California, the state that in fact represents the values of its workers,” Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif. , tweeted Thursday afternoon.