As Disneyland remains closed with no reopening date in sight, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced today that he is sending members of his staff to Walt Disney World to see firsthand how the theme park is operating amid the pandemic as the company is demanding Disneyland be allowed to reopen.
Disney has pointed to the success of Walt Disney World and its reopening in July with no known cases of COVID-19 linked to the park. It appears Newsom heard the argument, so now he wants his team to “get a better idea of what is going on.”
Gavin Newsom told reporters in a statement Monday:
“I want folks to come back and tell me what they saw, what their experience was,”
Read: Two Favorite Disneyland Shows Closing Permanently, According to Former Cast Members
It is unclear who will be apart of Newsom’s traveling team or when they are going. It is also unclear if they will tour Disneyland, which has put numerous health and safety measures in place including social distancing signs, cleaning stations and materials, and temperature checks.
The governor did not say the team would only be visiting Disney World; they may go to Universal Orlando, too, but the Walt Disney Company has been the most outspoken about allowing its original resort and theme park to reopen.
The update on the matter comes after Newsom said last week the state was in “no hurry” to allow theme parks to reopen. He was heavily criticized for his stance by Disney officials and a California theme park group for being “unreasonable.” Since the stalemate between Disney and Newsom, 28,000 layoffs were announced and Disney chairman Bob Iger resigned from the state’s economic coronavirus task force.
