Lee Enterprises, the parent company of the Santa Maria Times, filed for bankruptcy after failing to convince 95 percent of its creditors to restructure its debt to allow for a later mature date at a higher interest rate. The company fell one percent short of that number and thus proceeded with a prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in which the majority shareholders can force a deal on the dissenters. Vice President Carl Schmidt said in a December 2 press release that the restructuring would not affect employees. Lee stock closed at 67 cents on Tuesday’s press deadline, down four cents from the previous day’s close.
