Disney delays moving a campus from California to Orlando, but not because of tensions

WUSF | By Associated Press

Published June 21, 2022 at 4:04 PM EDT

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is seen at Walt Disney World Resort's Hollywood Studios on Aug. 7, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The Walt Disney Co. is delaying by more than three years the opening of a campus in Florida to which 2,000 workers were being relocated from Southern California to work in digital technology, finance and product development. Despite being targeted in recent months by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Legislature, Disney officials said Thursday, June 16, 2022 that the delay had nothing to do with any dispute with state officials.

The Walt Disney Co. is delaying by more than three years the opening of a campus in Florida to which 2,000 workers were being relocated from Southern California to work in digital technology, finance and product development.

Despite being targeted in recent months by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Legislature, Disney officials said Thursday that the delay had nothing to do with tensions with state officials.

Instead, more time was needed to build the campus in the Orlando area and the company wanted to give workers additional time to adjust to the transition.

The three-year delay comes amid Disney’s public confrontation with DeSantis over the Parental Rights in Education law, or what critics call “Don’t Say Gay.”

The legislation prohibits the mention of gender identity or sexual orientation in primary grades, and the mention of it "in a manner that is not age appropriate" in older grades.

The new opening date for the Lake Nona campus is in 2026.

WUSF reporter Bailey LeFever contributed to this report.