Disney is moving forward with the Lake Nona development project that they pushed back last year. The new Disney campus was said to become the new home of Disney Imagineering and some other departments. The announcement first happened in summer of 2021, but it was leaked months earlier in January of 2021.

Originally the move was to take place by the end of 2022, but it was allegedly pushed back due to staff concerns about the move to Florida in the wake of the Parental Rights in Education Bill. However, if that was true, the campus would have been much farther along. The compound will be the working location of about 2,000 employees.

Some Disney Imagineers had quit over the initial announcement and then later more quit over Disney wanting them to agree to the move by a certain date. However the Lake Nona operation date was pushed back to 2026. This caused issues as a few people already moved to Florida ahead of the job while others were in house purchasing contracts. Many others had quit and then Walt Disney Imagineering was not moved.

According to the GrowthSpotter, Tavistock Development Company has submitted their 1.8 million-square-foot corporate campus designs on January 18, 2023. It seems that Tavistock  Vice President, Strategic Communications, Jessi Blakley is acting as an advisor for Disney in regards to the approval processes for this construction.

The construction will be done in phases. In total the campus will have six office buildings (B1-B6), two flex buildings (B7 and B8), three parking garages, a central plant, and a surface parking lot for visitors.

“Lake Nona will be designed with all of the buildings facing a central park area with pedestrians walkways linking each of the buildings and providing a quick walk to the Lake Nona Town Center, according to plans filed late last week.”

Guard units are in place the the three entrances to ensure only authorized individuals may enter the compound. The three entrances listed include two on Helios Boulevard and one on Medical City Drive.

More information provided includes the following:

“While the PD zoning allows for a maximum height of 10 stories, the initial plan calls for buildings to range in height from four to seven stories. Each of the parking garages will have six levels. The bulk of the built environment, 1.46 million square feet, is defined as general office, while the remaining 346,000 square feet will be flex office/industrial.”

Disney will be spending quite a bit on this new location. Costs are estimated at about $864 million, however it’s reported that they could be eligible for $570 million in tax breaks over 20 years.

Whether people want to relocate or not, Disney is moving forward on the large compound.

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