American City Business Journals
Bond Buyer experts discuss uncertainty surrounding DeSantis, Disney and Reedy Creek situation
Two bond experts can’t deny the unique situation the state of Florida — and Orange and Osceola counties — find themselves in with the eventual dissolution of Walt Disney World’s (NYSE: DIS) Reedy Creek Improvement District due to a law signed April 22 by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. There’s a lot of uncertainty and many questions about the situation, including how nearly $1 billion in bonds will be paid for; how rocky economic conditions would challenge a post-dissolution plan; and if this situation could lead to repeat dissolutions in other areas, according bond experts Natalie Cohen, president of National Municipal Research Inc. in New York and founder/principal author/publisher of The Public Purse, a municipal finance information site; and John Mousseau, president and CEO at Cumberland Advisors, a Sarasota-based investment management firm, during a June 14 episode of The Bond Buyer podcast, which directly discussed the Reedy Creek dissolution.