‘A Bunch of Novices’ DeSantis Disney Board Getting Crushed For Its Governing

It’s been just over six months since the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District took over for the former Reedy Creek Improvement District, and its tenure has been rocky, at best. The new Board, filled entirely with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis appointees, has faced numerous crises throughout its brief tenure, and it still has to deal with a lawsuit from the Walt Disney Company in State Court.

Related: It’s Official, DeSantis’ Disney Board Scraps Firefighters Perks

The Washington Post, a paper that usually doesn’t involve itself in Disney-related stories, ran a story exposing some of the more significant issues that the Central Florida Tourism Oversight Board has faced thus far. But one thing that kept popping up was that most of the Board members were political appointees rather than people with experience running a District the size and scope of Reedy Creek.

Chad Emerson, a lawyer and business executive who wrote a book about Disney’s origins in Florida, told the Washington Post:

I think you have a bunch of novices trying to run a really complex operation. Disney had 50 years or so of doing this and had figured out how to make it run and how to make the guest experience great. I don’t think these folks care much about the guest experience.

Board Issues

The CFTOD’s issues began back in May when Michael Sasso abruptly resigned. His resignation came just two days after his wife, Michelle Sasso, was named to the Florida Supreme Court by Florida Gov Ron DeSantis. His resignation highlighted some of the issues with the appointees. Rather than being former government officials or people with experience running large corporations or cities, they are people close to Governor DeSantis.

Martin Garcia, the Board’s Chairman, is a lawyer and a major political donor to DeSantis. Board Member Bridged Ziegler is a founding member of Moms For Liberty, a group known for trying to ban books in schools around the country. Board member Ron Peri is a conservative minister who once claimed that “tap water” was turning people gay.

DeSantis hired Glen Gilzean as the Board’s administrator, a position that paid $400,000 annually. However, Gilzean was also the head of Florida’s Ethics Commission, which prohibits its members from holding a public sector job. Just weeks before Gilzean took the job with the CFTOD, there were dismissed cases in front of the Ethics Commission against DeSantis. 

The Board also ran into issues with the Reedy Creek Professional Firefighters after it cut Walt Disney World season passes from its budget. Those passes were given to current and retired employees as part of a perks package from the former Board. Instead, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District voted to give each employee $3,000 to use however they see fit. That cost will not cover Disney World’s season passes with no blackout dates.

Cuts to employees’ theme park perks are just the beginning of how the CFTOD is remaking the former Reedy Creek Improvement District. The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District has cut $8 million in funding from security at Disney World, cut $3 million in road improvements to pay for legal fees in its cases against Disney, and, in August, cut all DEI programs and race-based hiring programs in the former Reedy Creek District.

Board Reaching Out

Gilzean has been hosting meetings with employees, taxpayers, and Reedy Creek residents to see what it can do to improve the District. However, some residents just want things to return to how they were.

Celebration Resident Debie McDonald told the Post:

I’m glad he’s open to talking with us. But I would like to see this all go back to Disney. This feud is ridiculous, it’s petty, and the only reason it happened is because of Governor DeSantis’s political ambitions. The people he’s left us with are all in over their heads.

The one taxpayer that the Board has not reached out to is Walt Disney World. During meetings and public discussions, the Board members do not refer to Disney World by name but instead call it “our taxpaying partner.”

Part of the issue is that the new governing District and Disney are engaged in lawsuits against each other. Disney is suing for damages over the loss of its governing District, while the CFTOD is seeking to undo any agreements Disney had with the former Board. Disney is also suing Governor DeSantis in Federal Court for violating its First Amendment Rights.

While the Board has only been on the job for over six months, it has shown some of its lack of knowledge, which could hurt Disney parks and municipal services.

We will continue to update this story at Disney Fanatic.