Big changes are on the horizon for theme park fans across the country. Following its recent merger with Cedar Fair, Six Flags Entertainment has announced a major leadership overhaul and confirmed the closure of at least one major park in 2025, with more potentially on the line.
Earlier this year, Six Flags revealed that Six Flags America and its attached Hurricane Harbor in Bowie, Maryland, would permanently close after the 2025 season. Now, the company has confirmed another round of sweeping changes: the elimination of all 27 park president positions across its U.S. theme parks, including those at Knott’s Berry Farm, Cedar Point, and Six Flags Magic Mountain.
The news broke on May 26, when the Orange County Register reported that longtime Knott’s Berry Farm President Jon Storbeck and Six Flags Magic Mountain President Jeff Harris were among those laid off. These eliminations are part of a broader corporate restructuring strategy.
“Six Flags Entertainment recently moved to a new regional operating structure,” an official company statement explained. “Under this new alignment, we have centralized certain functions and responsibilities at the corporate level. The company also made some changes to the roles and responsibilities of park leaders, sharpening the parks’ focus on execution, the guest experience and associates.”
While some outgoing leaders may take on new responsibilities within the company, others will depart entirely. Beyond the loss of individual leadership, four California-based theme parks will see 135 full-time jobs either eliminated or reassigned. Impacted employees will be offered severance packages or, in some cases, reassignment to available roles.
The workforce changes align with Six Flags Entertainment’s previously stated goal of reducing corporate staff by 10%. Now, those plans are playing out across the portfolio of United States theme parks it operates.
The merger between Six Flags and Cedar Fair has created one of the largest regional theme park operators in the world, but not without controversy. Theme park fans are concerned that the restructuring could result in fewer localized decisions and a more generic, centralized guest experience. With at least one confirmed park closure and widespread leadership changes underway, visitors may begin to see the effects of this shift in the coming months.
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