Six Flags spokesperson: ‘No plans to close parks’ in wake of merger with Cedar Fair

In the wake of a merger that could radically alter the landscape of the amusement park industry, the parent company that owns Six Flags Great America has no plans to close any of its parks, according to a company spokesperson.

Six Flags Entertainment Corporation (SFEC), which now owns 42 amusement or water parks in North America — including Great America in north suburban Gurnee — released its third-quarter report last week, which in one area hinted that the company is at least considering closing some of its parks .

However, when reached for comment by WGN on Monday morning, SFEC spokesperson Gary Rhodes said this is not in the company's plans.

"We have no plans to close parks," Rhodes stated.

The latest quarterly report was the company's first since the old Six Flags merged with the old Cedar Fair to form SFEC, now the largest regional amusement park operator in North America. The merger closed on July 1.

In one portion of the report broadly outlining SFEC's long-range plan — referred to as Project Accelerate — the company said it would "review the park portfolio over time, to optimize the asset base, narrow management's focus, and help reduce net leverage."

That's a lot of corporate speak, but it could be interpreted as SFEC considering closing some parks. That was also reported by The Independent , and it wouldn't exactly be a shocking revelation following such a merger.

But Rhodes' statement makes it clear that, at least right now, SFEC isn't planning to close parks.

There is one park that's being demolished , Six Flags New Orleans, but that has nothing to do with the merger or future company plans. That park has sat vacant for almost 20 years since floodwaters from Hurricane Katrina enveloped its grounds. It never reopened after Aug. 29, 2005.

Great America

In its third-quarter report, for the period from July 1 through Sept. 29, 2024, SFEC highlighted $1.35 billion in net revenues for the company, $111 million in net income and an attendance total of 21 million guests.

Six Flags President and CEO Richard A. Zimmerman noted that, after "extreme weather and other operating disruptions" hampered the company's financials during the first part of the third quarter, the final five weeks showed attendance up one million from the same period last year, if you combined Six Flags and Cedar Fair.

Great America, of course, factored into that total.

Rhodes said the company does not publicly share results for individual parks, so it's unknown how well Great America performed compared to the rest of SFEC's parks portfolio during the third quarter of 2024.

But when SFEC announced in August the new lineup of rides and attractions coming to its parks in 2025, one of those was Wrath of Rakshasa, a brand-new dive coaster set to open at Great America next season.

So if putting new investment into a park is an indicator that the company thinks it's doing well, then Great America would appear to be a valuable piece in SFEC's portfolio.

Great America opened in Gurnee in 1976 as Marriott's Great America. It was purchased by Six Flags in 1984 and just wrapped up its 2024 season with the conclusion of its annual Fright Fest.