Last year, Walt Disney Imagineering announced it would officially move its iconic headquarters from Anaheim, California, to Lake Nona, Florida, located right near the Orlando International Airport and nearby the Disney Parks. Over 2,000 jobs will reportedly move to what Disney describes as a master-planned working community.
Over the past few months, fans have questioned whether the move was still on. Some Imagineers left the company following the announcement, not wanting to relocate their families from California to Florida.
Orlando Sentinel reported in July of 2021 that Disney could receive over $570 million in tax breaks from the state of Florida for building the campus and cited this as a significant reason for the move. This tax break would be among the largest for a major American corporation.
However, the Walt Disney Company’s relationship with the state of Florida has weakened over the past few months after the company publicly spoke out against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s Parental Rights in Education Act, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
Many wondered if this controversy would affect Disney Imagineering’s move to Lake Nona. California Governor Gavin Newsom even asked Disney to reconsider the move, recommending they stay in a more supportive state for LGBTQ+ employees. After all, Disney only made a statement against the law after protests from LGBTQ+ Cast Members and fans.
A few weeks later, Governor Ron DeSantis announced retaliation against The Walt Disney Company, introducing and successfully passing legislation to dissolve the Reedy Creek Improvement District. In 1967, the Reedy Creek Improvement Act passed, allowing Disney to operate private municipal services like roads, fire prevention, and water surrounding Walt Disney World.
Considering this hostile environment, fans continued to speculate on the scheduled Disney Imagineering move to Lake Nona. As of this week, it seems the move is still on.
Disney’s Careers website continues to post high-level Imagineering positions in the Orlando area, with the most recent position posted on May 10. Two job postings in Glendale, California, even note that “the team will relocate to Orlando, FL in late 2024.”
