OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Struggling Overland Park-based movie theater chain Dickinson Theatres has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The 92-year-old company – which operates 18 theaters with 210 screens in seven states, including six theaters in the Kansas City metro area – listed assets of approximately $2.2 million and debts of over $7.6 million in Friday’s filing, according to a report in the Kansas City Business Journal.
According to the Business Journal, the company hopes to emerge from bankruptcy by Thanksgiving. The company says that they plan to close at least four theaters, including the Blue Springs 8 Theater.
“This is an unfortunate but necessary step driven by the general economy and movie industry trends,” said Paul Hoffmann of Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP, who represents the company in its bankruptcy, to the Business Journal.
Hoffman says that the slow economy, coupled with the lack of summer blockbusters and the high costs of converting their theaters to digital technology left the company too short of cash to make it to the upcoming holiday movie season.
