ORLANDO, Fla. – Board members for the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday to decide on final approval for a multibillion-dollar expansion of Walt Disney World.
The five DeSantis-appointed supervisors who oversee the Disney World district voted last week to give initial approval to a new development agreement that both sides had agreed to negotiate after a March settlement ended their state court lawsuits against each other.
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The agreement between Disney and the Central Florida Tourism and Oversight District would last for the next 15 years. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things. It was controlled by Disney supporters for most of its five decades until it was taken over by the DeSantis appointees last year.
Under the deal’s terms, during the next decade or two, Disney would be approved to build a fifth major theme park at Disney World and two more minor parks, such as water parks. The company could raise the number of hotel rooms on its property from almost 40,000 rooms to more than 53,000 rooms and increase the amount of retail and restaurant space by more than 20%. Disney would retain control of building heights due to its need to maintain an immersive environment.
In exchange, Disney would be required to donate up to 100 acres (40 hectares) of Disney World’s 24,000 acres (9,700 hectares) for the construction of infrastructure projects controlled by the district. The company also would need to award at least half of its construction projects to companies based in Florida and spend at least $10 million on affordable housing for central Florida.