DeSantis mulls new prison next to Disney World amid row with company

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is contemplating a move to build a new prison near Disney-owned land, he indicated on Monday. 

"If you look at this whole special district, Walt Disney Corporation obviously owns a lot of it, but the district owns other land," the governor said, according to The Hill. "Now people are like, what should we do with this land? People have said: Maybe create a state park, maybe try to do more amusement parks. Someone even said maybe you need another state prison. Who knows?"

"I just think that the possibilities are endless. “So that is now gonna be analyzed to see what would make the most sense. And that wasn’t necessarily even on the radar," he continued.

A prison next to the amusement park would likely have adverse effects on the popularity of Disney World, by far the largest economic attraction within the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.

Disney fell into the DeSantis's crosshairs after the company publicly condemned the state's Parental Rights in Education Act, which critics maligned as a "Don't Say Gay" bill. The law restricts discussion of gender-related and sexual topics with younger students.

The Reedy Creek Improvement District was a special economic zone around Disney World, within which the company enjoyed a special self-governing status that DeSantis revised earlier this year. The name was updated as part of the revision.

Apart from Disney World, the district includes additional land that the Walt Disney Company does not own. After the revisions earlier this year, DeSantis may appoint the board members of the special economic district, with confirmation from the state Senate.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.