NEWS: Original Florida Gov. DeSantis Appointees Replaced on Disney World District Board

Three years after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis moved to dissolve Disney World’s Reedy Creek District and create a new board to govern the property Disney World is located on, no original members appointed by the Governor are left on the board.

DeSantis recently appointed two new members to the board, Matt Ravenscroft and David Woods, replacing the final two original members who were still on the board up until a week ago.

This board oversees the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, and it now serves as the governing jurisdiction and special taxing district for the land owned by Walt Disney World Resort. Matt Ravenscroft and David Woods are the newest members of the board appointed by DeSantis. Before their appointments become official, though, they must be confirmed by the Florida Senate.

With these latest appointments, there are officially no remaining members of the original board that DeSantis created and appointed. Brian Aungst Jr. and Bridget Ziegler were the final two original members, and they have since been replaced.

According to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District website, the board members are as follows:

Alexis Yarbrough (Chair)
John Gilbert
Matt Ravenscroft
David Woods
Scott Workman

Ravenscroft is the Executive Vice President and Director of Sunrise Bank in Orlando. Previously, he served as a senior vice president at Old Florida Bank, United Heritage Bank, and Citrus Bank. Ravenscroft attended the University of Central Florida and earned his associate’s degree from Valencia College.

The other new member, David Woods, is an attorney at Woods & Woods, P.A., working in real estate, wills, trusts, and estates. He earned his bachelor’s degree in communication and media studies from Florida State University and his juris doctor from St. Thomas University.

DeSantis originally took over the special district — formerly known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District — after a political battle largely stemming from Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill (what critics refer to as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill).

Disney spoke out against the bill, which has now become a law, prompting backlash from Governor DeSantis. Following this incident, lawmakers took to dissolving Disney’s Reedy Creek Improvement District, addressing legislation to potentially revoke Disney’s no-fly zones, and introducing a bill to impact Mickey Mouse’s copyright protections.

Disney even filed a federal lawsuit against the governor and the district board, but eventually, the two parties came to an agreement.

Reedy Creek Fire Marshal Sign in Disney World

We’ll continue to keep an eye out for any additional updates to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District Board and beyond. In the meantime, make sure you stay tuned to AllEars for the latest Disney news and more.