NO BUYER YET FOR SIX FLAGS; TURNSTILE DIPS PARK HAS NIBBLES, SCHEDULES DEC. 12 SESSION FOR UPDATES.

Byline: ALEX DOBUZINSKIS Staff Writer

VALENCIA -- Fright Fest is over at Six Flags California's Magic Mountain, and investors are overcoming the shock of a 12 percent decline in attendance companywide.

But don't expect major changes at Magic Mountain and Hurricane Harbor anytime soon -- even though the parks are for sale.

``I don't expect them to find a buyer for ... Magic Mountain -- either going as a park or as real estate -- before the beginning of next season,'' said Robert Niles, editor of ThemeParkInsider.com.

Magic Mountain is one of a half-dozen Six Flags Inc. parks across the country that are up for sale. The company reports interest from potential buyers, and it has scheduled a Dec. 12 update on how sales efforts are going.

Meanwhile, Magic Mountain is getting ready for next year.

``It's business as usual with us,'' said Sue Carpenter, a spokeswoman for the park. ``We are preparing for '07 as if we are a member of the Six Flags family. So whether we are or aren't a member of the Six Flags family, it's going to be business as usual.''

There was speculation after Six Flags' announcement of a proposed sale that the theme park could be sold to development interests.

But that would require the county to authorize a zone change for the park, and county officials have discounted that possibility.

Many of the big players in the theme park industry seem uninterested in making a play for Magic Mountain, Niles said.

``There's definitely going to be interest in moving rides,'' Niles said. ``A lot of the smaller amusement park chains, certainly they would like to get some of these rides.''

But Six Flags says none of Magic Mountain's rides are currently being moved.

Even as Magic Mountain prepares for the busy spring season, Six Flags officials say their company is poised for growth after undergoing a top-down reorganization starting with the appointment of Mark Shapiro as the company's new CEO in December 2005.

In a quarterly report released Thursday, the company revealed companywide theme park attendance for the third quarter was down 12 percent -- to 14.3 million compared to 16.3 million in the same quarter a year ago.

The company did not release attendance figures for Magic Mountain, citing a policy against releasing park-specific numbers.

It was Dan Snyder, the owner of the Washington Redskins, who took control of Six Flags and installed Shapiro as CEO. Since then, the company has tried to attract more families to the park, instead of just being a haven for teenagers.

``I think most people expect that this would be, to use the football terminology that Dan Snyder is so familiar with, a rebuilding year for Six Flags,'' Niles said.

alex.dobuzinskis(at)dailynews.com

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