As some have been predicting over the past few years, and most especially during this economic downturn, Six Flags, Inc. announced that it is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
In an online letter to employees, President and CEO Mark Shapiro said Six Flags inherited a $2.4 billion debt load that cannot be refinanced in the current financial markets.
Under their pre-negotiated reorganization plan, Six Flags intends to shed $1.8 billion of the debt, leaving $600 million as it exits. Shapiro also said he is seeking expedited approval for their plan from the District of Deleware. Operations were expected to continue as normal, and should not have any impact on visitors to its parks. Shapiro also assured employees, which most of them are seasonal at this time of the season, that their jobs and paychecks are safe.
Despite the bankruptcy filing, Shapiro noted that the company actually did well in 2008, attracting 25 million visitors and making $275 million, yet could not keep up its previous debt obligations.
For more, visit CNN.
Original discussion here...
http://www.thrillnetwork.com/boards/...ankruptcy.html
Also, regarding this... they have said it will be business as usual... this is just a debt reduction move.
I was expecting this to happen to year. I was just waiting for the US auto companies to do it first. I should not be happy but I do find I'm glad they are doing this since it seems cool to do it this year. That's a lame excuse. I'm glad they say that it will be business as usual for this year but I'll still keep an eye out for the end of the season. I'm glad I got to SFA and SFKK this year. Will Cedar Fair do it in the next two years or so and not look nearly as cool?
Hopefully, they'll sell off SFKK. It wasn't a craphole of a park until Six Flags bought it. It would be nice to see it become visitable again: Better staff, more investment, more maintenance, fewer dismemberments.
Almost all of Six Flags parks are crap holes. 2 of the parks in Ohio that Six Flags owned went down hill. Cedar Fair tryed to save Geauga Lake but couldnt save all of it. And the Columbus Zoo owns the waterpark that Six Flags sold to them. Now called Zoombezi Bay.
It's always funny to see people say that Six Flags is a craphole park, but let's just ask this. With the exception of Cedar Fair, name 5 amusement parks in the US where you can ride a good 8-10 GOOD quality roller coasters? I'm still thinking here. Every Six Flags I've been to, with the exception of Astro World, was beautiful parks. I think the Cedar Fair fan boys need to stop over generalizing their bad visits and wake up already. Because without Six Flags, your coaster counts would be, if you visited every Six Flags, at LEAST 100 coasters shorter. Bankruptcy is not necessarily a bad thing, many companies have done it before and come out of it successfully. Six Flags will do the same too.
I said ONE Six Flags park is a craphole, and I stand by that. A girl got maimed for life because of seriously negligent maintenance coupled with poor operator training. The park wasn't like that before SF took over. I only speak poorly of the one park because it's the only one I've been to.
Chapter 11 is not much to worry about right now. We should start worrying if they file chapter 7. Six Flags will make it through this.
We're all talking like they have to shed a lot or they're in danger of going to Chapter 7 or have to divest assets. Right now, the talk is totally otherwise.
Hopefully they can turn it around.
And as far as the comment about them all being crap holes, (not referring to Brian) SFOG and SF St Louis are both very nice parks IMHO. SFA and SFKK though were both a disappointment.
This year I've turned the page on SFA and SFKK being crap holes except for looking at the urban lot next door and the boarded up portion of the storage shed on Chang. I didn't fry in the sun at either as well to bother my day. I took DHollon's advice to ride Penguin's Blizzard River. It's a great rapids.
You have to love these new reports about it being business as usual. Of course it will be the parks have opened and have their operations budget for the year. So they wouldn't even feel a pinch do to it until the season is over and they prepare for next year.
I'm looking forward to see the "Parks are open" ads soon.
I Want them to sell of Pretty Much all the Remaining Premier-Parks Which are:
- SFAm
- SFKK
- TGE
- SFMex
- LR
- SFNO
Sell off the Bad Eggs (IMO) and keep the Major League Well Liked Bread-N-Butter Parks.
^ You have to keep in mind that although liquidating assets sounds like a solution, the company will not be able to fetch much for those properties in the current real estate market. And that's EVEN if they can court a serious buyer (highly unlikely in this credit crunch).
Also, with every property sold, the company's annual cash flow is reduced by millions.