The city of San Diego and SeaWorld have settled a lawsuit in which city officials alleged the park failed to pay more than $12.2 million in rent, late fees and interest.
Under the terms of the settlement SeaWorld will pay the city $8.5 million, as well as provide:
- Complimentary season passes to San Diego teachers on an annual basis for five years;
- One free admission each year to active duty military and veterans for five years;
- 1,000 SeaWorld admission tickets that the city will provide to local school districts.
SeaWorld issued a statement on Tuesday in which officials stated, “We’ve valued our collaborative relationship with the city for 60 years and are happy to be a part of the San Diego community. We look forward to many years of working together.”
In its lawsuit, the city alleged that SeaWorld underpaid rent between Jan. 1, 2019, and April 30, 2022, while the park argued that the payments were waived because the theme park was forced to shut down for months at a time during the coronavirus pandemic.
After the lawsuit was filed last year, city officials said SeaWorld was the only city tenant with similar lease agreements – there are 800 – in default for unpaid rent after March 2020, when mass closures started at the beginning of the pandemic.
In a statement, former San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott – new city officials were sworn in Tuesday, including Elliott’s successor, Heather Ferbert – called the settlement “a good result for San Diego taxpayers.”
“We’ll recover overdue tax and provide benefits to service members and local schools. This also allows us to reset a fractured relationship, avoid a lengthy trial and put the money to work for taxpayers immediately.”
