Disney Vacation Club President Jim Lewis was fired on Friday . . .

**TXTaylors5** · 08-16-2011, 01:38 PM

I had heard the rumors of problems with the Aulani DVC resort for some time and finally the rumors have come true . . .

As reported by the Orlando Sentinel:

Financial issues with a new Walt Disney Co. resort scheduled to open this month in Hawaii prompted the company to suspend all time-share sales for the project and force out three executives, including the president of its Celebration-based time-share business, according to several people familiar with the events.

Disney on Friday fired Jim Lewis, president of Disney Vacation Club, the company's time-share division. The company also dismissed Jim Heaney, senior vice president and chief financial officer of Disney Cruise Line and travel operations, and Lawrence Smith, a former director of finance for Disney Vacation Club who was most recently with food-and-beverage operations for Walt Disney World.

The dismissals followed an internal investigation into problems surrounding Aulani, an estimated $850 million hotel and time share scheduled to open Aug. 29 on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Plans call for the resort to have 460 Disney Vacation Club time shares and 359 conventional hotel rooms.

Disney said Monday evening it had appointed Claire Bilby, a 23-year company veteran who had most recently been senior vice president of distribution marketing and Asia Pacific sales, to run its time-share business. Bilby's title will be senior vice president of Disney Vacation Club.

For the full story, click HERE.

**supernova** · 08-16-2011, 03:36 PM

Wasn't this posted already?

**TXTaylors5** · 08-16-2011, 04:14 PM

I didn't see a thread on this and thought the DVC section was the most appropriate place for this news. Being a DVC Owner, this is BIG news.

**tmbcole** · 08-17-2011, 05:20 AM

Thanks for posting. If it had been posted somewhere else, I didn't see it. It is important news. I never like to see someone lose their job. I wonder if this will change anything with regards to the Aulani points.

**DVCDad** · 08-17-2011, 05:44 AM

Originally Posted by tmbcole

Thanks for posting. If it had been posted somewhere else, I didn't see it. It is important news. I never like to see someone lose their job. I wonder if this will change anything with regards to the Aulani points.

They definitely deserve to lose their jobs for this. For the people who have already bought at Aulani with the mistakenly low fees, expect them to jump as high as legally possible every year until they meet with the corrected amount.

**NC_WDW_Daddy** · 08-17-2011, 12:02 PM

Wow, that is big news.

**doconeill** · 08-18-2011, 08:10 AM

This was over on the news board originally. Already a long discussion on it there.

From what I hear, Disney has already promised NOT to raise fees on the original owners prior them having shut down the sales last month, and will likely "subsidize" those owners in a way done similarly to one of the other resorts - Vero Beach I think.

Disney also says the error was unintentional - but still they fired three executives for it, reportedly without compensation. That smells like they did something very wrong...

**HauntedGabe** · 08-19-2011, 12:41 AM

I've been following Coconuts blog and you could just "feel" through his stories that something was amiss. The answers he was getting were very Un-Disney. Hard to believe this happened, but Disney is very use to Florida DVC's and getting to do anything they wish in FL. Just the public transportation and access to hotel, doesn't sound like Hawaii was letting Disney do as they pleased. Getting the idea Hawaii has their own set of rules.

smells like they did something very wrong...I couldn't agree more.