Theme Park Firm Reports Profit Dip

Cedar Fair, the Sandusky, Ohio, partnership that owns Knott’s Berry Farm and four other parks, said its second-quarter profit slipped 2.5% to $19.2 million, or 37 cents a share, and that attendance for its properties fell 3%. Profit dipped only slightly because of higher customer spending, Cedar Fair said. Revenue rose 3% to $124.3 million. The company did not break out results for Knott’s, but officials said attendance and customer spending at the Buena Park attraction were higher. The park now has two major rides operating that were not during the first half of last year. 1999 has been a year of stresses on amusement parks. At Walt Disney Co.’s Disneyland, attendance “has turned from disastrous to mildly disappointing” this summer, said a park employee with access to internal figures. Unlike some Southland parks, which have discounted admissions heavily this summer, Disneyland for the most part has held the line on its ticket prices. Disneyland is operating this summer without an expensive new attraction and with major construction-related disruptions from redevelopment of the area around the Anaheim park.