Amid controversy over Disney World’s special district, Universal Studios is asking the Orange County Commission for a district of its own.
The commission plans to discuss that request at a meeting Tuesday. A public hearing to create the district could come at a later date.
The proposed Shingle Creek Transit and Utility Community Development District, or CDD, would be structured like 15 others already within the county. It's unlike Disney's Reedy Creek Improvement District — now the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District — which was specifically created, and revised, by the Legislature with a greater scope of authority.
The CDD would help Universal fund public infrastructure around its upcoming Epic Universe through tax-exempt bonds and special assessments.
The new theme park is under construction and — based on corporate information from last year — is expected to open by the summer of 2025.
The CDD would cover 719 acres – including about 384 acres of actual development -- south of Sand Lake Road and west of John Young Parkway.
Through 2029, it would fund $174 million in capital improvements, like drainage, water reclamation and a transit station.
In a memo, Deputy County Administrator Jon V. Weiss, said the iimprovements will be owned, operated, and maintained by the CDD or, by agreement, other public entities, to include major transit improvements such as station and tracks related to Lynx and the Sunshine Corridor, and certain improvements related to Destination Parkway, Epic Boulevard, and the South West Regional Water Reclamation Facility.
