Things to know about 2 casino reopenings
When ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — four of Atlantic City’s 12 casinos shut down in 2014 and a fifth followed two years later, it seemed to many that the city’s gambling industry was in an irreversible death spiral.
But things have been looking up since then for Atlantic City, due in no small part to the fact that there is now less competition.
On Thursday, two of those five casinos will reopen under new owners and new names.
The former Trump Taj Mahal will reopen as the Hard Rock, and the former Revel will reopen as the Ocean Resort Casino. Some things to know about them:
Hard Rock
Background: The former Trump Taj Mahal shut down Oct. 10, 2016. It was bought by Hard Rock International, owned by Florida’s Seminole Indian tribe, for $50 million in March 2017. Between the purchase price and renovations, Hard Rock plans to spend at least $500 million on the casino, which President Donald Trump, who was a real estate magnate at the time, opened in 1990 at a cost of $1.2 billion. It has 2,000 hotel rooms.
What’s new? Just about everything. Hard Rock stripped the property to its foundation, eliminating the Indian-themed domes and minarets of the Taj Mahal era, and redid the property inside and out. Instead of purple and pink palaces, guests will see a giant electric guitar as they drive up.
Ownership: Trump opened the property in 1990, calling it “the eighth wonder of the world.” Little over a year later, it was in the first of numerous bankruptcies, choking on high debt levels. Trump lost control of his casino company in a subsequent bankruptcy when bond holders took over. It was later purchased out of bankruptcy court by fellow billionaire Carl Icahn, who closed it in 2016 after a bitter strike over health care coverage and pension benefits for unionized workers.
Ocean Resort Casino
Background: Ocean Resort is the second incarnation of Revel, the $2.4 billion pleasure palace at the northern end of Atlantic City’s Boardwalk. It opened in April 2012, intended to be a game-changer for the market by focusing on upscale entertainment — and upscale customers. But they never materialized in sufficient numbers, and the casino went bankrupt twice and shut down on Sept. 2, 2014, after little more than two years of operation, making it Atlantic City’s most spectacular casino flop. Colorado developer Bruce Deifik bought it in January. It has 1,399 rooms.
What’s new: The once-meandering casino floor has been reconfigured to make it easier to get around, and new carpeting covers the casino floor and hotel rooms. A hamburger restaurant owned by actor Mark Wahlberg and his family is coming. New attractions will include a virtual golf simulator, a giant fish tank and a sports betting facility. Ocean Resort has affiliated with the Hyatt hotel chain. But because the property was still virtually new when it closed, not a lot needed to be changed.
Ownership: Following its 2014 closure, Florida developer Glenn Straub bought Revel for $82 million from bankruptcy court, but failed to reopen it in three years. He sold to Deifik in January for $200 million.