Atlantic City's Revel Casino Files For Ch 11 Bankruptcy

Atlantic City has been on the ropes for the past couple of years as new casinos have opened up all around the New York City metro area. Throngs of gamblers have sought out casinos in New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Some, like the casino at Aqueduct and Yonkers Raceways are utilizing electronic gaming, rather than the typical table games of yore.

In to that situation came Revel Casino, which was hyped as the newest and largest casino. It came with a huge price tag too, and New Jersey also sweetened the deal with $250 million in tax breaks.

None of that has helped as Revel never took in enough money to be sustainable.

It is now filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

What went wrong?

Wrong time and place - it was opening as the recession was finally receding, but other casinos with lower costs had opened closer to New York City and Philadelphia in the interim. Atlantic City's hasn't been considered a destination for a gamblers for years. If you've got coin to throw on the tables, you'll be heading to Las Vegas where you can get room and airfare for a comparable amount of money that you'd spend in Atlantic City.

Many of the casinos have suffered from a lack of investment (notably the former-Trump properties), including those that sold for little more than the land value.

While some effort has gone into improving the conditions beyond the boardwalk, Atlantic City is very much a depressing locale to visit. Then again, many of the same complaints could be filed against Las Vegas - which despite its glitz and glamour on the Strip - is still complicit with a seamy underside that has many of the same problems as Atlantic City.

What Vegas has that Atlantic City lacks is the cachet of being a destination for more than a quick jaunt. While there are plenty who come to Vegas for a night, many more are coming for extended periods of time to gamble, see shows, and take in the sights. That's not happening in Atlantic City, and some of that has to do with the casino culture.

There's far too much reliance on the bus junkets from New York City carrying senior citizens and gouging others who might want to spend more money in town. After all, if a casino lowered the cost of a hotel room per night, that would translate into more money spent on the floor - greater buzz and lead to people spending more time and money in the casinos.

Revel wasn't alone in trying to change the culture in Atlantic City to increase spending there; Borgata has done the same with catering to a more affluent set of visitors. The problem is that Revel's costs ballooned and couldn't be sustained.

Now, it's possible that New Jersey will eventually recoup the costs for the tax breaks it gave to Revel. Just don't count on it happening anytime soon.

Port Authority Taking New Look At PATH To Newark Liberty Airport

A train (or subway) to the plane has been a catchy idea for decades in the New York City metro region. Only with the construction of the JFK AirTrain and a connector between the Northeast Corridor and the AirTrain at Newark Liberty airports is there any semblance of a mass transit option at those airports.

It isn't the easiest connection to make, and it would require someone in Manhattan to make multiple transfers to get to Newark Airport in particular.

That's why a direct PATH to Newark Liberty holds such allure.


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The Port Authority is proposing to extend PATH from Newark Penn Station to the AirTrain stop on the Northeast Corridor.

The bistate agency is launching a study to assess the possibility of extending the World Trade Center-Newark PATH rail line from Newark Penn Station to the existing Northeast Corridor Rail Link, allowing access to Newark Liberty's AirTrain for terminal access.

"Extending PATH to Newark Liberty International Airport has been discussed for a generation," said Port Authority Deputy Executive Director Bill Baroni. "We are now moving this process forward quickly to bring together our PATH system, Newark Liberty International Airport, and Lower Manhattan. It is a regional win for all."
The project would generate more than $600 million in design and construction work while adding permanent jobs for the link's operation, according to a press release.

This would be an internally conducted feasibility study and it will likely find a need and reason to go ahead with the environmental studies and approvals necessary for construction.

The result of that project would not only add capacity to the airport, but it would mean a one-seat ride from Lower Manhattan to the airport's doorstep. It would significantly cut travel times and improve the competitiveness of Lower Manhattan office space to international businesses. Giving a quick and easy connection to the airport would benefit those businesses and improve rental opportunities at the World Trade Center and other downtown rental opportunities.

This jibes with yesterday's study results that indicate that the Port Authority generates most of its revenues from passengers at its area airports. It would also support the reason behind a proposal for the Port Authority to take over the Atlantic City airport operations. Generating revenues would help support other core missions for the agency although the Atlantic City airport isn't exactly tied to the agency's core mission within the New York City metro area. It would likely be used to generate revenues for other projects within the Port Authority's jurisdiction.

Serial Killers Running Amok in New York and New Jersey

Investigators no longer believe that the same killer is involved in the murder of four women outside Atlantic City and the murders on Long Island near Jones Beach.

"There is no connection between the Atlantic City case and the Suffolk County case," Suffolk Police Commissioner Richard Dormer said, citing recent investigative findings.

Suffolk investigators began looking closely at the unsolved Atlantic City murders after the remains of four craigslist call girls were found on a remote coastal island in December. The four victims in Atlantic City were all female prostitutes. And they were found dead in November 2006 in a ditch behind a motel on the Black Horse Pike highway.

All were barefoot, their bodies arranged facedown in a line with their heads pointing toward Atlantic City. The four slain hookers found near Gilgo Beach on Long Island were wrapped in burlap sacks and dumped amid brush-covered dunes. Dormer said the different methods used to dispose of the bodies is not the only factor that sets the cases apart.

"There were other items connected to the two cases that indicate that it may not be the same person," Dormer said, without elaborating.

The FBI will lead an aerial search of the island dumping ground, where the bodies of five - and possibly six - additional victims have been found in the past two weeks.

That indicates that we're talking about two separate serial killers, but in reality, the recovery of 9 or 10 sets of remains in Long Island suggests that we've got at least two, if not more killers involved in dumping their victims along a stretch of highway near Jones Beach.

Due to the age of some of the remains, speculation is that at least some of the older remains may be the victims of serial killer Joel Rifkin, but that will take further forensic investigation and the remains are being reviewed and studied by the New York City Medical Examiners and forensic scientists.



The FBI will be assisting local law enforcement in their search, and are using specialized aircraft to identify areas for additional ground searches in the thick scrub brush along Ocean Parkway and the nearby beaches.

Suffolk County Police Chief Richard Dormer suggested that there are at least two suspects in the serial killings of four Craigslist call girls found in December near Oak and Gilgo beaches.

Police divers are also combing the waters of the bay near where the other remains were recovered.

As I had surmised yesterday, it would appear that investigators are looking at multiple serial killers dumping bodies in the area. Due to the evidence gathered thus far, investigators now think that there are at least three serial killers victims recovered thus far, including those that may be the work of Rifkin - and that doesn't count the serial killer who struck outside Atlantic City.

Is a Serial Killer On Loose on Long Island?

The discovery of four bodies alongside a road near Jones Beach on Long Island has raised the specter of a serial killer. The remains of the four bodies, each in various states of decomposition, have been tentatively identified as all women, and investigators from the Suffolk County police department are working with the FBI to ascertain the identities of those bodies.

This discovery recalls a similar discovery of four bodies near Atlantic City under similar circumstances. If the two incidents are connected, we're talking about a methodical serial killer who targets prostitutes. Investigators are trying to connect the two cases by examining Craigslist as the link.

Detectives are looking into the Craigslist angle of the women who were murdered in New York. If that information can be tied to gambling records, including comps and casino credit, they may be able to establish the critical link to bringing the killer to justice, accordint to officials.

After the murders in Atlantic City, detectives scoured hotel records for the names of any known offenders in the area. The prostitutes on Pacific Avenue met with detectives and offered information about strange clients they encountered.

Hundreds of leads were investigated and followed up on by the Atlantic County Task Force that was formed to investigate the murders. The unit is still working and waiting for more information from Long Island detectives.

In Atlantic City the bodies were found relatively soon, approximately one month after the murders. This allowed for fast identification of the victims. The police immediately reached out to witnesses in the community for additional information. There are no such witness groups in the Long Island case.

The bodies found on Long Island laid out in the elements for so long that only skeletal remains were left of three women. Two of the bodies in New York were stuffed into burlap bags keeping critical evidence with the bodies.

Prostitutes who advertise on Craigslist are more isolated from each other. They often work alone unlike the street walkers in Atlantic City who all seem to know each other and exchange information about their clients. However, prostitutes who use Craigslist to advertise their services leave an electronic history of their records. This may be the leverage detectives need to catch the killer.

Investigators are looking for hallmarks of the killer (the signature) by which the killer identifies the victims as his. The investigators are busy trying to figure out the identities of those victims:

Dental remains might uncover fillings or a false front tooth, which could help identify the victim, Mr. Van Zandt said. Investigators can tell if a skull has been crushed by a rock or if throat bones show signs of being crushed. All of that can be matched against existing missing-persons records — there are some 875,000 people reported missing in the United States each year — and run through a federal database, he said.

Already, two cases of missing women are being studied in connection with the Long Island case. One is the disappearance in May of Shannan Gilbert, 24, a prostitute from Jersey City. She was last seen not far from where the remains were found.

The other involves Megan Waterman, 22, of Scarborough, Me., who was last seen on June 6 leaving a hotel in Hauppauge, N.Y., several miles northeast of where the bodies were found, after she had been coaxed into doing escorting, with meetings arranged on Craigslist, said Cynthia Caron, who runs a nonprofit group that helps families of missing people.

Investigators have removed the SUV from a home where Gilbert was last seen.



Some of the more notorious New York area serial killers are known to target prostitutes, including Joel Rifkin, who may have killed as many as 17 drug-addicted prostitutes before being captured and thrown in prison on a life sentence, and Arthur Shawcross, whose parole on an earlier manslaughter case enabled him to resume a murderous spree across upstate New York.

Gov. Christie Proposing Major Changes To Atlantic City and Meadowlands

Coming off the budget battle to start righting the New Jersey fiscal ship, Gov. Chris Christie has set his sights on the horrible governance at the Meadowlands and Atlantic City. He's proposed a state takeover of the casino and harbor gaming districts and disbanding the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, which oversees the Meadowlands racetrack, IZOD Center, and the stalled Xanadu project.

The key points are as follows:

 The state would seek to transform Atlantic City into a convention and family friendly resort, including a major expansion of the boardwalk that would include amusement rides. The entertainment areas would be placed under the control of a new state authority, essentially turning it into an independent city within a city.

• Money from the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, now shared throughout the state, would stay in Atlantic City for projects and improvements there.

• The Meadowlands Racetrack could be sold for a token $1, or turned into an off-track wagering facility without live horse racing.

• The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority would be all but disbanded, becoming simply a landlord for the facilities it now operates. The Izod Center arena in the Meadowlands could be privatized or sold.

• The state would help re-finance the long-stalled Xanadu project in the Meadowlands, enabling a new developer to take control of the garish, high-visibility retail and entertainment complex alongside the New Jersey Turnpike that many consider an embarrassment.

Atlantic City has fallen well behind other casino destinations, particularly Las Vegas in attracting business. It couldn't keep up with the glitz and glamor and local corruption didn't help. Mismanagement in the local government meant that money that should have gone to improving the city ended up in the pockets of bureaucrats. Yet, the fault isn't solely on the city's political structure. The casinos themselves bear culpability too. They've failed to entice customers to Atlantic City in a way that can compete with Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun and other nearby casinos. When was the last time you saw advertisements for Caesars Palace or the Borgata? Combine that with paltry comps and excessive pricing for rooms and you end up with daytrippers who aren't going to spend a whole lot of time or money on the casino floor.

The casinos themselves need to rethink how to better market themselves just as surely as the city and casino district have to clean up their act. A state takeover may help accomplish this, but it should never have come to that sorry state in the first place.

Eliminating the public authorities is a good first step to cutting down the bureaucracy and cronyism that dominates the local politics in the state. Yet, the Meadowlands portion of the proposal is troublesome because of how it might refinance the Xanadu project, leaving taxpayers on the hook for the tab even as it was a project that should have kept the risk on the developers - not taxpayers.

So, according to the Record, who wins with this proposal?

Winners
The casino industry: Casino owners believe anything that increases state investment in Atlantic City is good for business.
Gamblers: Atlantic City becomes more inviting.
State Sen. Stephen Sweeney and South Jersey legislators: Held the line on gaming outside of Atlantic City.
Xanadu: Gets a new lease on life.
Stephen Ross: New York real estate developer could get state financing.
Construction industry: Proposals could lead to massive construction in Atlantic City and Xanadu.
Prudential Center: Arena in Newark could see less competition from Izod Center.

Who loses?

Sports and Exposition Authority: To close up shop.
Atlantic City Convention and Visitors Authority: Also would close.
Harness racing: Would no longer be state-subsidized. The Meadowlands Racetrack could close.
Monmouth Park: Track attendance is up with new shortened race schedule, but state may privatize track, leaving its future uncertain.
Atlantic City municipal government: Gets a vote of no confidence. Loses control of the casino and entertainment district to the state.
Xanadu: If no deal is reached, the state will foreclose.

It isn't clear whether the Bergen County political delegation wins or loses since it depends on how much money ends up being generated from the rejiggering of the Meadowlands enterprise (the racetrack, IZOD Center, and Xanadu). While some people are critical of the racetrack venture and think it may end up shutting down the track along with the loss of jobs, the state needs to seriously consider whether horse racing is a venture that it should be spending and losing money on when there are more critical needs. Bear in mind that the NJSEA was meant to generate money for the state through investing in the sports venues in the Meadowlands and around the state. It's turned into a money-losing operation that can't sustain itself. That has to change.

UPDATE:
To prove my point about the casinos themselves being part of the problem, note that Travelzoo has a list of hot deals. Among them is a deal to get a room at the Luxor for all of $38 bucks for a room on the Vegas Strip. That's significantly cheaper than comparable rooms in Atlantic City's casinos and it can potentially be cheaper to fly to Vegas than to drive to Atlantic City. Airfare from NYC can run $350 or so to Vegas. If you plan on going for a week, you could end up spending less for a room in Vegas. The cheapest rooms in an Atlantic City casino are from $115 a night at the Trump Marina. That doesn't compare favorably to Vegas casinos on the strip at all.

Swinging a Budget Axe Doesn't Go Far Enough

Here's your morning fiscal insanity watch. New Jersey's fiscal situation is perilous at best, and the unions are busy screeching that Gov. Christie threatens to destroy the state's education system.

Funny, but they're silent on the fact that school administrators throughout the state are making more money than the governor.

Governor Christie receives $175,000 while the average annual salary for superintendents in Bergen and Passaic counties topped $180,000 in the 2008-09 school year.

And the overwhelming majority of schools chiefs in the two counties make more than Education Commissioner Bret Schundler — as do almost half the assistant superintendents and business administrators. One in four principals in the region also makes more than Schundler.

Most of the districts operate no more than four schools. Schundler, who sets state policy and oversees more than 600 school districts, is paid $141,000.

The Christie administration has been calling for all school staff to take salary freezes this year as local districts grapple with steep declines in state aid. But while the governor has focused heavily on keeping teacher salaries from rising, he has been less vocal about administrative salaries, which are generally twice as much.

They're ignoring the fact that Atlantic City has more city workers per capita than all but 30 municipalities out of 1,400 examined with a population of 20,000 or more. Atlantic City has more city workers than cities with three times the population.

The city’s work force is a fluid number that changes depending on the season: higher in the summer, lower in the winter. According to city payroll records, the work force was as high as 1,847 employees during the summer of 2008 under Mayor Scott Evans. At the end of last year, Atlantic City employed 1,513 government workers and spent $92 million on salary and wages.

Biloxi, Miss., another city with casino gambling, has a population of about 45,670 residents, about 6,000 more people than Atlantic City. But Biloxi’s municipal government employed 773 fewer employees last year and spent $62 million less, 2009 payroll records for both cities show.

Comparisons made by The Press with some other payrolls at cities that provide the same level of services as Atlantic City include:

Wilmington, N.C., a popular college town with more than 100,000 residents, employed 408 fewer workers than Atlantic City last year and spent about $43 million in salaries and wages — half as much as Atlantic City.

Green Bay, Wis., where the population exceeds 101,000, pays 526 fewer employees than Atlantic City and spends almost $50 million less on its salaries and wages.

“Atlantic City is significantly overstaffed,” concluded a December 2002 study of the city’s payroll commissioned by the Casino Association of New Jersey. And by the measure of payroll to population, the city’s municipal labor force has grown.

All this adds up to create a crushing tax burden that is collapsing on itself. For Atlantic City, it means that patronage and corruption leads to higher taxes, poor services, and a declining tax base because the city is spending tens of millions of dollars more than it should in any given year. That adds up. Consider that if Atlantic City had a workforce the size of Green Bay (which is three times the size), the government could save $50 million a year. That's $500 million over 10 years, more than enough to provide a better education system, and yet this is money squandered.

Christie has been calling for a cap on salary increases at 2.5% and called for increased worker contributions to benefits, and that's met by bitter shrieking by the usual suspects.

UPDATE:
Leave it to NJ Democrats to once again call for the resuscitation of the temporary "millionaire's tax" that hit people with incomes well below $1 million to fund what they're calling property tax relief. That's using one tax to pay for a program to mitigate the effects of other taxes, rather than getting to the source of the problem - the high taxes and their causes. The high property taxes are directly related to the high costs of governance in the state, and that includes benefits that are unsustainable and a workforce that is far larger than those of comparable municipalities.

New Jersey Attorney General Finds Mismanagement In Atlantic City

Featherbedding, no show jobs, and extravagant pay for an oversized city government that has repeatedly failed to deliver for the people of Atlantic City. That's all part of a report by the State Attorney General's office on how the city has screwed the people of Atlantic City.

A new state report has found widespread waste in Atlantic City's City Hall, from personal use of city-owned cars to unneeded patronage jobs.

The report is the latest blow to the city of 40,000, which has a long history of political corruption.

"It is completely unacceptable that when our state is facing a gaping budget deficit and New Jerseyans are the highest taxed in the nation, Atlantic City is being reckless with taxpayer dollars," Gov. Chris Christie said in a statement.

State Comptroller Matthew Boxer says New Jersey law states city council members in a community the size of Atlantic City should not have aides.

Yet there are 11 aides for the nine city council members. The audit says the aides collect more than $480,000 a year and do little work.

One aide told auditors her only consistent duty was to read newspaper obituaries and find people from her councilmember's ward who had died so their families could be send letter of condolence.

In a response to the audit, City Council President William Marsh says he's tightening procedures for the aides but not doing away with them.

It's shocking I say, in a Casablanca kind of fashion:



City officials justify their excess by claiming that they aren't being nearly as conspicuous in their consumption as their predecessors, as if that excuses their fiscal irresponsibility. They use city owned cars for personal use, and continue to drive the city into fiscal oblivion while the people of Atlantic City suffer with a lack of jobs and opportunities despite decades of promises that casinos would be their salvation.

UAW Plotting Strike Against Atlantic City Casinos?

You have to hand it to the UAW. Their timing is absolutely impeccable. They're contemplating going on strike against several casinos in the course of trying to unionize casino dealers and floor workers at a time when Atlantic City is reeling from the recession and revenues are down significantly every year since 2006. Tax revenues from the casinos is also sharply lower, which means that state revenues are going to take a hit as well. Casino revenues are down more than 15% this year. The state can't afford Atlantic City's woes, and a strike would make things worse. From the Record:

The parent company of two Atlantic City casinos targeted for a possible dealers' strike began planning Monday to hire replacement workers in the event of a walkout.

Harrah's Entertainment Inc. said it started implementing a contingency plan that includes hiring replacement workers for any dealers who go out on strike.

Over the weekend, the United Auto Workers authorized a strike against Bally's Atlantic City and Caesars Atlantic City, but did not set a strike date. Previously, the union authorized a strike against the Tropicana Casino and Resort.

"We take their threats seriously," said J. Carlos Tolosa, the company's eastern regional president. "There are 14,000 employees in Atlantic City who rely on Harrah's for their livelihood, and we are not going to let the misguided tactics of the UAW interfere with our guests or the employees who are working hard to keep Atlantic City competitive this summer."

Company spokeswoman Alyce Parker said any actual recruitment and hiring would be done "when and if there is a strike."

A Tropicana executive did not immediately return a call seeing information on preparations for a possible strike.

The UAW is seeking the first-ever union contracts with 3,000 Atlantic City dealers, even though hotel and other service workers have been unionized for decades. In addition to Bally's, Caesars and the Tropicana, they also won a union representation election at Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, but have not yet voted on a strike there.

The casinos are preparing for the strike contingency by planning to hire replacement workers so that they can continue gaming operations.

The casinos have already cut more than 3,000 jobs since last year.

And yet, many of those dealers have signed off on considering a strike:

UAW spokesman Dave Mellet said 97 percent of Caesars dealers and 100 percent of the slot technicians authorized a strike, as did 92 percent of Bally's dealers. That comes just months after dealers and slot technicians at the Tropicana Casino and Resort made similar decisions.

Look for Gov. Corzine to press the casinos to give in to the union demands, rather than see the strike take place.

So why are the workers looking to unionize? They are busy saying that the casinos are cutting back on their 401(k) and pension plans and other benefits. Welcome to the wonderful world of being an employee in a recession. The travel and tourism industry is heavily dependent on people freely spending their money, and casinos take a serious hit during recessions. The casino operators aren't going to expand benefits at a time like this, and cutting such benefits is one of their options other than cutting payroll. However, because the situation in Atlantic City is so bad, they're cutting payroll and cutting benefits.

"Nobody wants a strike, but we're going to stand up to enforce our rights," added Ed Hendricks, a Caesars slot technician for 15 years. "We have negotiated for almost two years, but instead of reaching an agreement, the company keeps cutting back. Harrah's has cut our 401(k) match, increased our benefit costs and laid off our fellow workers."

Steve Norton, a Missouri casino consultant and former vice president of Resorts Atlantic City, predicted many dealers would cross picket lines if a strike happened.

"You don't make that kind of threat unless you're prepared to go through with it," he said. "Any dealer with any intelligence would realize the industry is in horrible shape right now. It would be like signing a death warrant for your own job."

The problem for these workers is that if they go on strike, others will happily take their place and they'll be out of jobs.

Icahn Buys Atlantic City's Tropicana Casino For Bargain

Before the collapse of the markets, it was expected to fetch over $1 billion. Instead, Carl Icahn and his investment group snatched up the Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City for $200 million. They were able to do so by offering up a portion of the debt from their $1.4 billion mortgage on the property:

The Icahn group was the only one to submit a bid for one of Atlantic City's largest casinos by the Friday deadline. Sean Mack, the attorney for the conservator who has been overseeing the sale process, said the investors group could be approved as the new owners by a bankruptcy judge by June 12.

It would then need to get temporary approval from New Jersey casino regulators, and apply for a full casino license, which could take a year to get. The new owners would apply for interim casino authorization, which typically lasts nine months, and can be extended for another 3 months beyond that, said Dan Heneghan, a spokesman for the state Casino Control Commission.

The investors, including Icahn, hold a $1.4 billion mortgage on the Tropicana. That enabled them to craft their offer in a way that competitors were unable to match.

They agreed to act as a so-called "stalking horse," laying down a minimum offer in bankruptcy court that sets the floor for bids. If no one else exceeds it, the stalking horse gets the casino.

The investors offered $200 million of their debt for the casino. That required other parties to offer more than $200 million in cash or securities -- something no one else was willing to do.

What's surprising is that there were no other offers, despite the low bid. The property has value based on its location on the Boardwalk and yet it received only one bid, which is perhaps a testament to the ongoing tight credit problems facing most American businesses despite the government's attempts to free up more credit. It remains to be seen if Icahn can turn around the casino's fortunes.

As Goes Atlantic City

Atlantic City is in serious trouble, and it's not just because of a declining casino take. The City has been failed by its political leaders, and all the casino revenue in the world isn't going to fix it, even though hundreds of millions have flowed into the city to fund just that. Actually, it's far more than that - it's $1.5 billion since 1984 (and another $500 million to other localities around the state).

Even casino operators see that there are tough times ahead.

“I could sit here and slit my wrists listening to some people here,” quipped Kevin DeSanctis, chief executive of the Revel Entertainment Group, which has seen work stall on its $2 billion Atlantic City hotel.

The city’s gaming revenue declined 15 percent in the first four months of this year compared with the same four months in 2008, but Linda Kassekert, chairwoman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, dismissed Wilmott’s comments.

“Although times may be tough, there’s a lot of life left in the queen of resorts, so don’t count her out so soon,” she said today.

Still, many of the analysts thought Atlantic City faces enormous problems.

Dennis Farrell of Wachovia Capital Markets said during a roundtable of gaming analysts that it “needs a complete makeover.”

Fellow analyst David Berman of Regal Capital Advisors jokingly asked whether he could be provided with a security guard before addressing the “death spiral” remark.

“I agree those words are aggressive, but there are significant challenges facing this marketplace,” Berman said.

“There are parts of this town that look like downtown Beirut,” he added. “You’ve got to put money into this town to bring back the luster.”

Let's start with that last line. Much of downtown Atlantic City looks worse than Beirut. At least Beirut has an excuse of civil war. What's Atlantic City's excuse?

Block after block of desolation isn't conducive for people to hit the town outside the sheltered world within the casinos. The casinos themselves aren't making it easy for people to want to go either. The Atlantic City casinos have severely cut back on comps, which encourage people to come and spend even more money. Just look through the Casino Control Commission's own paperwork and you see declining comps, which makes little sense when there is so much more competition.

Just this week, a new casino is opening in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, which is 90 minutes from New York City. That's in addition to the Connecticut casinos - Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods, along with Empire City in Yonkers.

That's still more options for gambling and there are more choices to spend a day or a weekend or longer.

Atlantic City has the chance to be a destination, but the casinos, city and state have to do more to convince people that it deserves their tourist dollars. Chasing away tourists with more taxes and fees isn't going to do it. Neither is reducing comps when they flow regularly from other destinations.

The residents of Atlantic City deserve better.

Atlantic City Casinos Face Bankruptcy and Even Foreclosure

ATLANTIC CITY — Uncertainty has always been a way of life for casinos who make their money on games of chance. But now, Atlantic City casinos are looking at their own futures with uncertainty.

Donald Trump quit as chairman of the casino company he once ran, and wants his name off the three casinos that have been synonymous with Atlantic City for decades, now that they're in bankruptcy for the third time.

The Tropicana Casino and Resort will file for bankruptcy next month, and Resorts Atlantic City — the first casino in New Jersey — could also become the first to be foreclosed on.

Since gambling was legalized here nearly 31 years ago, never has the country's
second-largest casino market gone through this turbulent a time.

In addition to the economic slump, which leaves people with less money to gamble, Atlantic City's 11 casinos are being battered by fierce competition from slots parlors in Pennsylvania and New York. Those gambling halls are attracting people who recently had no choice but to come here unless they wanted to get on a plane to Las Vegas, or drive to faraway casinos in other states.

"We've never seen it like this," said Linda Kassekert, chairwoman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission. "This is a global recession, and the impact on discretionary income, you just see it immediately."

Last year, gambling revenue at Atlantic City's casinos fell 7.6 percent. The year before that, it was down 5.7 percent.

This really comes as no shock. The economy sheds 500,000+ jobs a month and retires loose half their retirement savings, they are not going to take there money to Atlantic City to gamble with. Similar downturns have been seen in Las Vegas and the Connecticut casinos (which are also direct competitors for Atlantic City.)

Also, I have been saying for years that Atlantic City has a poor business model. The casinos never invested the kind of money into the surrounding community to make it family friendly. AC is not a vacation destination the way Las Vegas is, but it could be. There is no reason why the surrounding area of AC could not be filled with shopping, amusement parks, restaurants, theaters, etc. Only recently has New Jersey started direct train service from Manhattan to AC. An outlet shopping center recently opened, but more needs to be done.

Another problem is AC hotels themselves. I have always complained that AC hotels try to make their money off of the hotel rooms themselves. AC hotels out price their market for hotel rooms. They never learned that if you save me money on the hotel room I can stay there longer and actually gamble more and spend more money in your restaurants and gift shops. More comps bring back the players quicker and that means more money to the casinos. That leads into my last AC casino gripe, the tables themselves. AC casinos rather have a $25 craps table empty on a Saturday night than lower it to $5 or $10 and have it packed. There are more low-rollers than high-rollers. And recognizing that fact is sure way to raise more money.

The problem is that New Jersey is heavily dependent on the revenues generated by Atlantic City. AC provides jobs, tax revenue, some tourism and is a huge revenue generating stream for the state. If AC fails, NJ tax stream will decrease, thus further hurting the little guy.

Name That Party: Disgraced Atlantic City Mayor Edition

The disgraced former Mayor of Atlantic City, Robert Levy, was sentenced to probation and forced to pay a fine of $5,000 over lying about his military record.

Levy, 61, had pleaded guilty in federal court in Camden in November to one count of falsifying his service record when he applied for increased veterans benefits in January 2003.

During today's hearing, Judge Jerome B. Simandle asked Levy to explain more about the dangerous missions behind enemy lines he told probation officers he participated in.

"I just picked up my M-16 and my radio and went along," said Levy, looking tan and fit with a neatly trimmed gray beard. "I didn't do this on a regular basis, but on occasion they asked me and I always said yes. I was not a hero running around like Rambo. I was scared to death."

But Judge Jerome B. Simandle was skeptical.

"It would appear to be a significant exaggeration was made to the probation,"

The Star Ledger fails to provide his political affiliation.

Those living in New Jersey know that you're a Democrat unless otherwise specified. The media should know better since such stories get picked up nationally.

It's not difficult. Throw the (D) after his name is first mentioned. It's not hard.

And the kicker is that Levy may end up collecting VA benefits he sought. That's a travesty all of its own.

UPDATE:
On cue, the AP picks up the story, and doesn't bother to report Levy's political affiliation. Figures.

Trump Marina Heads Off To Margaritaville

The Trump Marina Hotel and Casino is being sold for $316 million to the consortium that operates the Margaritaville concept.

A New York gambling company that specializes in financing and developing entertainment resorts is buying Atlantic City's Trump Marina Hotel Casino for $316 million, and will rename and rebrand it Margaritaville, Trump officials said this morning.

The new owner, Coastal Marina LLC, an affiliate of Coastal Development LLC, is buying the casino from Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc., the casino company under Donald J. Trump, in what is shaping up to be Atlantic City's most challenging year, given new neighboring competition.

In acquiring Trump Marina, Coastal will be charged with trying to turn around the worst performer among Trump's three casinos, one that sits next to the formidable Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa and Harrah's Resort in the city's Marina district.

The 23-year-old casino has not been refurbished in two decades, and has consistently ranked the lowest revenue generator among Atlantic City's 11 casinos.

Last month, slots revenue at Trump Marina dropped 10.6 percent, and table game revenue was off by 37.2 percent, compared with the same month a year ago.

The Marina has been consistently at the bottom of the casinos, and it has been shabby for decades because of Trump's money woes. A fresh infusion of funds and rebranding will certainly invigorate the casino, as will the continued development in the Marina district.

The location is prime considering the luxury Borgata down the road, and a new $5 billion Mirage hotel and casino complex that will be built adjacent to the Trump location.

There had been speculation that Trump would try to sell all three of its casinos, but there hasn't been any takers, so they're selling it piece meal.

Odd Pairing

Who would think up the idea of putting a statue of Lenin in an Atlantic City casino restaurant? Well, the Tropicana Hotel and Casino's Red Square restaurant did just that.

The statue is of Vladimir Ilich Lenin, the communist founder of the Soviet Union. Lenin stands outside the front door of Red Square, the hipper-than-thou, Russian-themed restaurant and bar in The Quarter, the highly capitalistic dining and retail section of Atlantic City's Tropicana Casino and Resort.

And Garrett has objected to the architect of one of history's brutal dictatorships being part of a restaurant's theme statement ever since Lenin's likeness went up early in 2005. Garrett has written letters to the editor. He has made calls to radio talk shows. And he has circulated public petitions demanding that Red Square tear that statue down - or at least move it inside the restaurant, away from where thousands of people walk by it every day.

He doesn't like the idea of Lenin getting a place of honor - or at least high visibility - anywhere in the United States. But it really bugs him that it happened in Atlantic City, just down the White Horse Pike from his Absecon home.

Lenin was the father of one of the most ruinous and murderous totalitarian dictatorships in modern history. Yet, the Trop has decided to give his statue prominence?

What gives? Well, communist chic perhaps. The same folks that profit off Che Guevara are the kind who push this kind of nonsense. The historically illiterate will simply wonder who the bald dude at the front is if they even bother to ponder such things as they go between the casino and the restaurant as they partake in that most capitalistic of activities - gambling.