by William A. Jacobson at legalinsurrection.com
The media headlines ignore that Disney simultaneously announced it still plans to invest $17 Billion and create 13,000 new jobs In Florida
I bet you didn’t realize that Disney just announced that it was planning to invest $17 billion and create 13,000 new jobs in Florida.
That’s because you read the misleading headlines, which focus on Disney cancelling a $1 billion project:
But if you read the details, the reality is that Disney cancelled one small part of its Florida plans for less than $1 billion, and kept almost all its other plans. And even that $1 billion was not such a sweet deal for Florida, since it was subsidized by over $500 million in tax incentives, and there were doubts that the job growth, which was by transferring employees from southern California, even could happen.
The New York Times told that complete story, but it’s headline was as misleading as the rest, Disney Pulls Plug on $1 Billion Development in Florida (emphasis added):
The project, known as Lake Nona Town Center, was supposed to cost $864 million, but recent price estimates have been closer to $1.3 billion. Disney had planned to relocate as many as 2,000 employees from Southern California, including most of a department known as Imagineering, which works with Disney’s movie studios to develop theme park attractions.
Most of the affected employees complained bitterly about having to move — some quit — but Disney held firm, partly because of a Florida tax credit that would have allowed the company to recoup as much as $570 million over 20 years for building and occupying the complex.
He cited “changing business conditions” as a reason for canceling the Lake Nona project. “I remain optimistic about the direction of our Walt Disney World business,” Mr. D’Amaro said in the memo. He noted that $17 billion was still earmarked for construction at Disney World over the next decade — growth that would create an estimated 13,000 jobs. “I hope we’re able to,” he said.