Six Flags Entertainment Corp. intends to sell the vacant land around Kings Dominion, the company says, as it looks for ways to generate revenue. Kings Dominion uses less than half of the roughly 870 acres it owns in northern Hanover County.
Earlier this month, Richard Zimmerman, the company’s CEO, said Six Flags has opportunities to “further optimize” its portfolio of assets.
Six Flags took ownership of the amusement park and its property last year when Kings Dominion’s former parent company, Cedar Fair LP, joined forces with Six Flags in a $2 billion merger. The Wall Street Journal first reported the company’s plan to sell the property.
When Ohio-based Top Value Enterprises and Taft Broadcasting Co. first envisioned Kings Dominion around 1971, planners considered building an amusement park, resort hotel, golf course and shopping center. Eventually, they scrapped plans for everything except the amusement park, and the extra land has sat mostly empty ever since.
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When planners first envisioned Kings Dominion, they considered building a shopping center and golf course. Those amenities never came to fruition, and the extra land has been mostly empty ever since.
MIKE KROPF, TIMES-DISPATCH
In addition to the 400 acres Kings Dominion occupies, Six Flags owns roughly 470 more acres east and south of the park. Six Flags controls all the land east of Doswell Road, extending all the way to the North Anna River, which serves as the border between Hanover and Caroline counties, and the property that hosts the State Fair of Virginia.
Except for a campground operated by Kampgrounds of America, most of that land is undeveloped. The park also owns about 150 acres directly south of the Kings Dominion water park, and earlier this year it leased 10 acres to Dominion Energy for a new substation.
Altogether, Hanover County assessed Kings Dominion’s land for about $75 million this year. Selling the land could require redrawing the property lines — the largest parcel contains 600 acres, including amusement park space and open land. The properties are zoned for general business and light industrial.
It is unclear if Kings Dominion plans to keep any available land and what specific properties it wants to offer. The spokesperson for Six Flags did not provide any details about the company’s intentions.
Earlier this month, Six Flags reported a net loss of $100 million in the second quarter, which Zimmerman called “a disappointing outcome,” and guest attendance dipped 9% compared with the same period a year earlier. Zimmerman, who was previously general manager of Kings Dominion, said earlier this month he will step down by the end of the year.
