New owners for Cypress Gardens

A federal bankruptcy judge has approved the sale of Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven at the bargain price of $16.8-million to a Polk County real estate investment group. LandSouth Holdings LLC, which typically trades in timberland or develops raw acreage, confirmed it hired Kent Buescher to run what will be its first venture in the theme park business. In the bankruptcy, Buescher was forced to give up his ownership of Cypress Gardens and Wild Adventures theme park in Valdosta, Ga., in two separate transactions that will raise $51.3-million to be split among creditors, who are owed more than $125-million.