Marineland Mayor Gary Inks announced what he described as “concerning news” at the town’s commission meeting Thursday evening: “It’s apparent that Discover Dolphin has filed for bankruptcy. That is the parent organization of our project here, Marineland Dolphin Adventure, here in town,” he said. (The parent is actually the Dolphin Company.)
“We’re not exactly sure what that means with regards to their Florida attractions, but it can’t be much of a positive sign,” Inks said. “So we have great concern.”
The Dolphin Company is a Mexican company that owns over two dozen dolphinariums. It bought Marineland Dolphin Adventure for $3 million in 2019 from the Georgia Aquarium in 2019. Inks was the general manager there at the time, and was not retained.
Felicia Cook was general manager of Dolphin Adventure until the end of January, when she resigned. She had gone months without getting paid, as had other employees, according to Flagler County’s tourism director, Amy Lukasik. News reports have pointed to similar issues at other subsidiaries of the Dolphin Company.
The Dolphin Company itself in a statement on Wednesday disputed that it had filed for bankruptcy. It had started a process “to restructure its financial liabilities under the protection and supervision of a Mexican court specialized in financial debt restructure process,” the statement read. “This process is NOT A BANKRUPTCY FILING but a mechanism provided by Mexican laws to facilitate an agreement with the main creditors, protecting the interests of other suppliers, employees, and customers, as well as the company’s assets for its benefit.”
Scott Spradley, a Flagler Beach attorney who specializes in bankruptcies (and who chairs the Flagler Beach City Commission), said the Dolphin Company is essentially describing bankruptcy proceedings under court supervision.
“The process described may not be a bankruptcy in the traditional sense,” Spradley said. “But the principles described in the press release suggest a mirror image of Chapter 11 reorganization in the U.S., which focuses on reorganizing debt under court supervision with the goal being to keep the business afloat.”
Dolphin Adventure is the economic driver in Marineland and accounted for almost a third of the town’s property tax revenue of $127,000 in 2024. The town has an overall operating budget of $172,500.
The company was billed $105,600 in property taxes in 2014, $43,700 of it for Marineland. It pays its bill in quarterly installments. But the last time it paid an installment was on July 1, 2024. Three installments are unpaid. The company paid all its 2023 installments between June and July 2023.
Cook did not return a call this morning before this article initially published. “She has said to me on and off for months that she had a lot of concerns because a lot of employees and her were not paid, on and off,” Lukasik said. Cook was a member of the county’s Tourist Development Council, an advisory board to the County Commission that meets quarterly. Local government and local tourism industry representatives sit on the board.
Cook attended the last meeting on Jan. 15 but did not allude to any issues, or if she did, she did so only obliquely: “Welcome to 2025,” she said. “I’m glad November and December are gone. So ready to move on.” Lukasik said Cook “had gone months” without a paycheck, as had others at the company, and stayed as long as she financially could. One employee who had been there decades couldn’t keep going without pay and left. She’d been told that the company was surviving by “robbing Peter to pay Paul kind of thing, but that the animals continued to be well taken care off.
For all its storied history, “it’s always been a struggle up there,” Lukasik said, at least after its early years, when it was the chief tourist attraction in a Florida still more natural than theme-parked.
The Marineland attraction was established in 1937 as Marine Studios by a trio that included Ilya Tolstoy, grandson of the great Russian novelist and a U.S. Army colonel and conservationist. The WPA Guide to Florida in 1939, when admission was $1 and operating hours were daily between 9 and 6, described it as “a cream-colored concrete aquarium, pitted with tempered glass portholes, and resembling a stranded Caribbean cruiser.”
The attraction was designed as an immersive experience in an “oceanarium” for visitors interested in sea life. “Through the portholes visitors see porpoises, sawfish, sharks, giant green turtles, shrimp, the manta (devilfish), and numerous common food fish. Brilliantly colored tropical fish swim in sea gardens of coral and algae, while penguins brought from Robbin Island off the African coast paddle on the surface.” Its immense tanks became sets for many movies before it turned into a dolphin attraction.
But gone are the days of nine-hour operations. The attraction currently is open only 15 hours a week: on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and only from 9 to 2, “which is a concerning sign,” Marineland Marina Manager Eric Ziecheck said.
“The Miami Seaquarium has been a thorn in their side almost from day one,” Ziecheck said, referring to the dispute that led to Miami-Dade’s aborting a lease and evicting the Miami Seaquarium, a Dolphin Company subsidiary, from its Rickenbacker Causeway location. “They’re still fighting it in court.”
Plenty of uncertainty remains.
“So things are changing here in the attraction, and we’re doing our best to try to find out what that means and how solid they will be able to perform,” Inks, the Marineland mayor, said. “Moving forward, we think that the Florida operations might be separate from the Discover Dolphin bankruptcy filing. We’re just not sure at this time.”
The Dolphin Company’s Eduardo Albor, in the statement, asserts that the company “continues and will continue to welcome new guests to all its parks, habitats, and business centers in Mexico, the United States, Italy, and the Caribbean, with the same commitment and dedication with which it has welcomed more than 21 million guests over the years.”
Glen Gainsbrugh says
So the overwhelming question regarding Marineland is not how long they can struggle on avoiding bankruptcy, but the fate and care of all the sea creatures that currently are in their care. Who will monitor their wellbeing?
Bryan says
How about the county buying it?
Protect those with no voice says
How are the animals being cared for if you can’t even pay your employees?
D Francis says
This is heartbreaking news. I did the Swim with the Dolphins last summer for my birthday and it was the most amazing bucket list experience ever! I was hoping to do it again. I was on an emotional high for several days after doing it. So very sad.
Laurel says
Try to make a deal with the university, and/or continue as a seaquarium. Leave the poor, damn dolphins out of it. They are too smart to be confined and used as performers. That’s sad. Time to move on. Most “zoos” have.
Marlee says
This happened a while ago…the volunteers ended up caring for the
building…we painted walls and maintained the property and…. then…..the longtime performing Dolphins
were sold to Seaworld….the rumor was because they were trained, the dolphins sold for
a million each!
Tony says
It’s amazing it lasted this long.
Billy B says
I guess the check for taxes from Mexico will be coming, but don’t hold your breath. Seems like another Captains BBQ is around the corner.
JimboXYZ says
I think they ran off the food restaurant (Ragga Surf Cafe) for that parking area last year ? How much of this is self inflicted & a revenue stream that simply is interrupted seasonally ? Just me, but nobody is swimming with Dolphins in the winter when it’s 30-40* F air temperature, can’t imagine the water being warm enough to make swimming an activity that anyone would book. That makes Marineland a seasonal city for business at best.
“The suspension, which the town attorney said could stretch past April, is not a small matter for Marineland, whose character as a town with only a handful of residents and just one private business is defined at least in part by the events that take place in town, especially in connection with its natural amenities.”
https://flaglerlive.com/marineland-suspends-all-special-event-permits/
Mike P says
The University of Florida Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience is right across from the Marineland Dolphin Adventure. Their mission as stated is “The laboratory provides a marine animal focused K-12 STEM outreach program and a public lecture series, with the goal of increasing community engagement in lifelong learning and marine science.” What a perfect fit, I hope that Marineland’s Mayor and Commission reaches out to then ASAP to save this facility and the amazing sea life there.
Greg says
More scam business folding up
Hammock Huck says
A reasonable solution would be to have some agreement with the University of Florida Whitney Labs assume the management and oversight of the Dolphin Facility, keeping it an educational based program. Otherwise, this longtime beacon of Flagler County will be lost to more overdevelopment of the barrier island, which is exactly what doesn’t need to happen.
Doug says
Below is a letter I authored to Whitney Laboratory –
I’ve lived in the Hammock (a barrier island community 5 miles south of Marineland) since 1978, and I, like many others, have fond memories of family visits to Marineland as a child. The history of Marineland, with its unique marine life and pioneering role in dolphin research, is more profound than realized. After reading the Flagler Live article about Marineland’s bankruptcy, it not only saddens me to think that this longtime beacon of Flagler County will flounder and potentially go unstaffed but also leads to more degrading of the structures and surrounding area as the property goes into litigation but the possibility that if a solution cannot be found, the property will end up in the hands of greedy developers. Marineland is not just a place but a part of my childhood and our community’s heritage.
Over the decades, I’ve witnessed the Barrier Island gradually succumb to overdevelopment, a trend that is already having visible effects. If Marineland were to follow this path, it would not just lose a site but also the natural beauty that the dunes represent. Once incurred, this loss would be irreversible, and we must act now to prevent it. The unique beauty of Marineland, once lost, can never be fully restored, and it is our responsibility to ensure that this does not happen.
I watched Whitney Laboratory build its facility across the street, and I genuinely appreciate your commitment to marine life and the educational value it presents to future generations. Your dedication to this cause is commendable and has not gone unnoticed. Therefore, this is a perfect opportunity for the University of Florida to significantly expand Whitney Laboratory by acquiring Marineland if that’s viable. This acquisition could preserve a significant part of our local history and marine life and provide a unique research and educational platform for the university.
Endless dark money says
Haha isn’t caring for others including animals woke and full of dei?
Ed P says
Jacoby Development owns most of the town. There has been planned housing/development for years.
A quick internet search and everything you need to know is there, except the time line.
The ocean front land value probably out weighs any “business” value of Marineland Adventures.
Just feels wrong. But Jacoby makes the rules, just ask Gary Inks. ( current Mayor)
Mark says
The writing is on the wall. The landowner Jacoby’s master plan is most likely to build a resort.
First, the amazing gem of Ragga gets kicked out. Now, the aquarium/dolphinarium is on the brink.
Palm Coast, Flagler County, and We the People need to step up and save the gem that is Marineland.