ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board members heralded their new budget, the first since they took over what used to be known as Reedy Creek.
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They noted the tax cut it gave taxpayers, more than 80% of which will go to Disney. They pointed to eliminations they made to theme park passes and golf trips to show they were fiscally responsible and said – repeatedly – they were committed to making the Most Magical Place on Earth the safest place in the country.
It was a shift after their last meeting one month ago, when the biggest headline was that they were cutting millions of dollars in police overtime that kept guests safe at the parks.
“Every taxpayer, guest, employee and cast member should feel safe on district property,” Board Member Brian Aungst said.
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In many ways, though, public safety has been a thorn in the side of the new board’s tenure since they assumed their roles in late February.
At first, the employees of district’s fire department were some of their biggest supporters, having gone years without a new contract and decades without meaningful expansion of their staffing and equipment capabilities.
Board members immediately promised them changes – a departure from the old Disney-controlled board. They worked hard to reach a new contract that, according to some of the firefighters, ensured the department would hire close to 40 new positions in six months, more in the following years, and staff four additional ambulances and one new ladder truck. It also promised existing staff members a hefty pay raise.
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To the firefighters, it was as if the heavens opened. They excitedly voted to accept the new contract.
Fast forward to August, after the district replaced its administrator with an ally of Gov. DeSantis who pushed to renegotiate that contract. The relationship between the board and the firefighter’s union soured. Many of those agreements to enhance the fire department evaporated.
The district’s new budget shows that instead of 40 new staff members for the fire department, six would be hired. Instead of five newly staffed vehicles, one ambulance would be replaced.
District leaders pointed to the renegotiated contract that gave existing firefighters a salary increase and provided a list of other upgrades that would be paid for by the new budget. Included in the list were new radios, CPR devices, extraction equipment and replacement stretchers – the stretchers were a particular complaint made to board members early on.
Aungst also said the district was in the process of signing a letter of intent to purchase three new fire trucks. Engines are custom made-to-order and take around three years to deliver, putting the new wheels inside stations in 2026.
Firefighters have not spoken publicly about the differences between what was budgeted and the contract they initially approved in May, and they have not said if six personnel would be enough to ease their staffing woes for now.
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It’s also not clear what the district’s plans are beyond this fiscal year. WFTV asked the district’s administrator, Glen Gilzean, if he thought the district was falling short.
“I think with the fire department… the good thing is that the budget process is not over,” he said. “We still have some time, but more importantly, they have the one of the best and fairest contracts across the region.”
The differences can largely be chalked up to the district’s need to save as much money as possible as it fights three separate legal battles with its biggest taxpayer.
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Administrators budgeted $4.5 million for fees during the fiscal year, in addition to the almost $2 million they reported spending since mid-March.
With public safety being among the district’s biggest expenses, it was only natural the fire department would feel some of the pain. Some firefighters lamented the loss of their annual park passes Tuesday – a perk that cost the district $2.5 million but administrators said was underutilized.
Board members said the pay raises they received and an announced stipend would make up for that.
WFTV has reached out to the firefighter union leaders for comment.
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