Did you know that Walt Disney World in Florida includes two distinctive neighborhoods that function as “company towns”? These towns also include several Disney homes! In the 1960s, when Walt Disney bought vast tracts of land in Central Florida for his ambitious Florida Project, the Florida Legislature played a pivotal role by incorporating two municipalities within the Vacation Kingdom. These unique Disney homes are in the towns of Lake Buena Vista and Bay Lake.
Disney Homes in Bay Lake, Florida
The Bay Court neighborhood in Bay Lake, FL consists of eight properties, with a basketball court situated in the center. Living just outside of Magic Kingdom and on Walt Disney World property must be an incredible experience!
Disney Homes in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
The Royal Oak Court neighborhood in Lake Buena Vista, FL is home to nine properties, featuring a swimming pool at the center. This neighborhood is located near Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa.
The Lake Buena Vista and Bay Lake “Disney homes” serve primarily as a residential area for Disney and Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID) executives and other select employees. Since 2023, Reedy Creek Improvement District is now called the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD). Both neighborhoods maintain a sense of exclusivity, as their residents are handpicked by The Walt Disney Company. This careful selection process ensures that individuals with strong ties to the company, whether through employment or other affiliations, are represented within these communities.
Selecting the residents in these Disney homes helped maintain and control the voting of those living there. As a result, votes cast provided Disney full authority over the two towns, facilities, building codes, and many other regulations. Additionally, Disney de-annexed the Golden Oak neighborhood and the city of Celebration, which are now part of Orange County and Osceola County, respectively. This maintained the current voting structure for the select residents in the Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista neighborhoods. However, it is important to note that the nature of these company protections may have changed somewhat following the transition of the Reedy Creek Improvement District to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.
Orlando Sentinel Article Regarding The Disney Homes (2015)
“Mayor Todd Watzel has had one of the most uneventful political careers in history. Watzel leads the City Council of Bay Lake, one of Walt Disney World’s two “company towns” incorporated by the state Legislature in the late 1960s. Forty-four residents handpicked by Disney live in two tiny gated mobile-home parks tucked away on the sprawling resort. There, they become cogs in the governmental machinery that allows Disney to control its own services such as planning, building codes and firefighting. Watzel was also a Disney World construction-project manager.
After Walt Disney chose Orlando for his massive development, his company negotiated a most unusual deal with the state to create three Disney governments. Reedy Creek Improvement District, which includes mostly Disney-owned land, is like a county government and handles most services, such as building codes and fire rescue. The taxing district, with a board that Disney selects, could not, however, take on certain work such as policing, district officials said.
So the state formed two Orange County cities as well. Bay Lake encompasses the four theme parks. Lake Buena Vista includes Downtown Disney and surrounding hotels. Disney stocks the cities with residents: Disney or Reedy Creek workers and retirees, along with their families. The residents provide the votes needed on issues such as approval of bonds for Downtown Disney area improvements. “The reality is, they’re just private cities,” said Chad Emerson, author of a book called “Project Future” about Disney World’s creation. Disney declined to be interviewed about the cities and referred questions to Reedy Creek.
Bill Warren, a former Disney government-affairs executive who serves as Reedy Creek’s district administrator, called the tenants an “apolitical little group.” “The bulk of what they do is live in the property,” said Warren, who is also Bay Lake’s unpaid city manager.
Residents purchase their own mobile homes and pay $75 monthly lot rent to Disney. The perks include short commutes for Disney workers and permission to use a gated lakefront area providing great views of Magic Kingdom fireworks. The Palfreymans make up 40 percent of Bay Lake’s population. Their neighborhood surrounded by pine woods is like their own Tom Sawyer Island: a natural oasis within Walt Disney World. Palfreyman is one of the cities’ combined 10 council members.
At their meetings every month, the councils approve matters such as pollution-control board appointments, hours for alcohol sales during special events at the theme parks and law-enforcement contracts to pay Orange County Sheriff’s Office to patrol the Disney area. “If they didn’t vote Disney’s way regularly, you can be sure they wouldn’t be Disney employees or living on Disney property much longer,” said David Koenig, author of several books about Disney.
Disney pointed to the unique nature of its plans for the area when it pushed for its own government in the 1960s. It is not completely immune to outside government. For example, it pays Orange County taxes, like property owners in other cities, and Reedy Creek submits development plans for approval to a state water-management district. Still, the arrangement has critics, who say it also allows Disney to escape typical regulations such as regional review of its development impacts. The people casting votes in all three governments say they do not simply rubber-stamp what their employer and landlord wants.
Exactly how Disney picks its inhabitants is something of a mystery. Reedy Creek said Disney seeks good workers who could benefit from living nearby. Palfreyman said he heard about an opening through work, told the company he was interested and became a Disney denizen soon afterward. Charlie Reed, 67, was asked by Disney about 30 years ago whether he’d like to live in Lake Buena Vista. It was especially helpful for him because working in utilities, he was on call around the clock.”
The longstanding partnership between Disney and the State of Florida has proven to be mutually beneficial and highly productive for several decades. This collaboration has allowed Walt Disney World to plan countless innovative projects and open attractions that continually enhance the guest experience. Through this relationship, both parties have demonstrated how effective cooperation between government entities and private corporations can lead to remarkable outcomes. By working together, they have transformed Florida into a premier destination for family entertainment. The opening of Walt Disney World fostered economic growth, job creation, and community development, showcasing the potential for successful public/private collaborations.
Thank you for visiting WDW Connection! Please be sure to follow us on Facebook for an array of stories and stunning construction photos that showcase the rich history, meticulous planning, and spectacular development of Walt Disney World.
If we can dream it, we really can do it – And that’s the most exciting part! – Horizons at Epcot