Back in 2021, The Walt Disney Company made plans to move some of its corporate divisions to the Lake Nona area in Florida, and according to an email sent out to Disney cast members by Josh D’Amaro Thursday, the plans have been canceled effective immediately.
During an earnings-related conference call with analysts last week, Robert A. Iger, Disney’s chief executive said, “Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes, or not?.”
On Thursday, Mr. Iger and Josh D’Amaro, Disney’s theme park and consumer products chairman, showed that they were not bluffing, pulling the plug on a nearly $1 billion office complex that was scheduled for construction in Orlando. It would have brought more than 2,000 jobs to the region, with $120,000 as the average salary, according to an estimate from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
In his email to Disney cast members, D’Amaro cited “changing business conditions” as a reason for canceling the Lake Nona project.
According to the New York Times article, “About 200 Disney employees already relocated to Florida from California. Mr. D’Amaro said in his note that the company would discuss options with them, ‘including the possibility of moving you back.’ The Lake Nona project had initially been scheduled to open next year. Last July, Disney pushed back the move-in date to 2026, citing construction delays.”
This story is breaking and will be updated as new details are discovered.
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