The amusement park company Six Flags is seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, saying it needs to reorganize and shed $1.8 billion of debt.
Mark Shapiro, the New York-based company’s chief executive officer, says the move won’t affect the operation of its 20 theme parks in the U.S., Mexico and Canada.
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Six Flags says it actually had a great year in 2008. It saw 25 million visitors and posted record revenues. But executives are trying to lighten a $2.4 billion debt load that they say is unsustainable.
Saturday’s bankruptcy filing came after an earlier plan to negotiate an out-of-court deal with creditors failed.
The city of New Orleans has been embroiled in a dispute with Six Flags over the company’s refusal to reopen its eastern New Orleans park, shuttered since 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. A federal judge earlier this month stayed the city’s lawsuit against the company until late July.
The city, in a statement released late Saturday, noted that it has a restraining order in place that bars the removal of assets and equipment from the New Orleans property. The city, which has a lease agreement with Six Flags, said it would file a “proof of claim” to protect its interests in the bankruptcy case.
Six Flags shares have traded below $1 since September. They closed at 26 cents on Friday.
