General (08)
Susana Barrios
From:Stephanie Mercadante <burglin.stephanie@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, October 14,
To:Public Comment
Subject:\[EXTERNAL\] Regarding Disneyland’s Price Hikes, Corporate Privilege, and
the Urgent Need for a Gate Tax
Warning: This email originated from outside the City of Anaheim. Do not click links or open
attachments unless you recognize the sender and are expecting the message.
Councilmembers and Anaheim Residents,
Here we go again. Disneyland Resort has once more raised its ticket prices. And with every hike, the
so-called “Happiest Place on Earth” becomes a little more exclusive, a little more elitist, and a lot
more out of reach.
A single-day ticket now costs more than a week’s worth of groceries for many families. But it doesn’t
stop there. Parking? Raised. Food? Raised. Souvenirs? Raised. Even the churros feel like luxury
items. Magic? It’s still there—just buried under layers of upcharges and corporate greed. And while
Disney squeezes every last dollar from its guests, it has the audacity to oppose a modest gate tax—
proposed by the residents of Anaheim—a tax that would help fund our infrastructure, public safety,
and housing. They claim it would hurt tourism, as if a $5 tax on a $179 ticket is the dealbreaker—not
the $179 ticket itself. This isn’t about protecting guests. It’s about protecting profits. Here’s the harsh
truth: Disney always wins. The residents always lose. The city bends over backward to accommodate
the resort—waiving taxes, rerouting traffic, tolerating environmental harm—while families struggle to
afford a single day of magic. Disney gets the glory. Anaheim gets the bill. Yes, Disney may donate to
a local cause or send Mickey Mouse to wave at a ribbon-cutting. But let’s compare that to the billions
in profits and the staggering subsidies they receive. If residents saw an independent valuation of what
Disneyland takes versus what it gives, they’d be shocked. The imbalance is not just unfair—it’s
unsustainable. And it’s made worse by the crippling debt Anaheim is in, much of it tied to
sweetheart deals and decades of corporate giveaways. So we must ask: how do they get away with
this? The answer is simple: pay-to-play politics. Disney pours millions into lobbying, campaign
donations, and backroom influence to ensure every vote, every ordinance, every regulation tilts in
their favor. They don’t just sell magic—they buy silence, compliance, and protection. It’s time to say:
Yes on a gate tax. No on any new Disney subsidies. Investigate the pay-to-play politics
between Disney and the City of Anaheim. And most importantly, return Anaheim to its
residents Disneyland used to be a symbol of joy, of unity, of wonder. Now it’s a fortress of
exclusivity, guarded by price hikes, corporate lobbying, environmental negligence, and political
favoritism. If Disney truly believes in magic, it’s time they stop hoarding it—and start sharing it with
the people who make it possible. Thank you.
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