The owners of Adventure World said yesterday that they will invest $27 million to transform the Largo park into a Six Flags theme park before it reopens in the spring.

Oklahoma-based Premier Parks Inc., which has owned Adventure World since 1991, bought the Six Flags chain for $950 million in April.

"Obviously our acquisition presented us with this great opportunity," said Kieran Burke, Premier's chief executive.

"The motivation is clearly to create a major regional destination park," he said.

Adventure World competes with Paramount's Kings Dominion, a larger theme park near Richmond. Adventure World will be renamed Six Flags America. Plans include adding a new 6-acre section called "Gotham City" that will feature two new roller coasters, bumping the total number to seven.

The park will also add other superheroes and cartoon characters such as Superman, Tweety and Daffy Duck.

The park, which is open from May to September, attracts 1 million visitors a year, and has 2,000 seasonal employees. The expansion will create about 550 seasonal jobs, said Debbie Daniel, a Premier spokeswoman.

The park sits on 150 acres, and Premier owns an additional 350 acres on which to expand, Burke said.

Pub Date: 10/29/98