Belmont Park in financial trouble

It has grown into one of San Diego's favorite beachside destinations, but Belmont Park is now in some financial trouble and the leaseholder is blaming the City of San Diego.

The decades-old landmark, a staple that attracts four million visitors every year, has filed for bankruptcy. Leaseholder Thomas Lochefeld says the City has forced his hand to file Chapter 11 after it raised his rent by 700-percent.

His regular payment was rejected by the City, they declared his lease in default and ordered him to turn in the keys by Saturday. His seven-year, $12.5 million investment was about to be lost.

The City has yet to be heard from on how they will respond to one of their largest entertainment leaseholders falling into bankruptcy, but the issue will likely play itself out in the courts.

If things don't go in Lochefeld's favor, he says the park he grew up to love, the one he helped turn into a premier attraction, could fall back into a dilapidated beachfront eyesore.