News, notes and commentary about the casino capital of the East, and the author’s hometown.
Yesterday I wrote a bit about the numbers behind the proposed mini-casinos considered for Atlantic City. Now, with news that Hard Rock is talking about spending $300 million to build a mini-casino, I thought I’d do a little number-crunching and learn if you’d be better off using that money to buy an existing property or […]
Comparison shopping in AC Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingHere are more details about the proposed regulatory changes in Atlantic City, which seem to make the tax process even more byzantine. Ah, I just wanted an excuse to use “byzantine” in a sentence. It’s one of those words that I don’t get to use enough. From Business Week: The new casinos would have to
Details of AC “overhaul” Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingIn case you were wondering, the former Sands site in Atlantic City continues to deteriorate. From the AC Press: The barren site overlooking the Boardwalk consists of little more than mounds of dirt and scruffy tufts of grass peeking through the soil. Intruders are kept out by a padlocked chain-link fence bearing a “No Trespassing”
Pinnacle Prairie update Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingMy Atlantic City history column in March’s Casino Connection has nothing to do with gambling. Instead, I look briefly at the career of an artist who was born in Atlantic City, Jacob Lawrence: Dozens of notable figures have played a part in Atlantic City’s history, from Thomas Edison and Diamond Jim Brady to Jay-Z and
AC native Jacob Lawrence in Casino Connection Read More »
atlantic city, writingThis has been up for a while, but I haven’t linked it yet and, with the news that Donald Trump and Carl Icahn are dueling over Trump casino empire, it’s relatively timely: my piece on the early history of Trump Plaza in Casino Connection: Trump was leery of the Casino Control Commission. It had forced
Trump Plaza History Read More »
atlantic city, news about gambling, writingMy piece in the Las Vegas Business Press about the beginning of the end in Atlantic City is out: Historians have taken the date 476 A.D. and the deposition of Romulus Augustus, the last Roman emperor, as the “official” date of the fall of the Roman Empire, even though at the time most Western Europeans
Fall of the Boardwalk Empire? Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingChecking the headlines in the AC Press as of 2PM Pacific time, I couldn’t find a word about the seemingly-momentous decision of MGM Mirage to sell its stake in Borgata. This is curious, since you would think that having one of the biggest casino companies in the world, which at one point had billions of
AC to “get its act together” Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingAccording to a WSJ report, MGM Mirage has decided to sell its interest in the Borgata and presumably close the door on any future developments in Atlantic City: For years, New Jersey regulators have raised concerns about the suitability of casino company MGM Mirage's business partner in China. Now, MGM Mirage has an answer: cash
Other shoe about to drop in AC? Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingA few more thoughts about Atlantic City, culled from a few Advisers to Gov. Chris Christie have called for casino regulatory reform, a public-private Atlantic City marketing initiative and possible state intervention in city government as ways to save New Jersey’s casino industry from competition and its “failed” business model. On Friday, Christie released 19
AC: Moving forward Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingThere’s another negative milestone for Atlantic City slots: in December, they got less play than slots in Pennsylvania. From the AC Press: Gamblers are putting more money into slot machines in Pennsylvania than they are in Atlantic City.The Gaming Industry Observer says December was the first month ever that slot-machine handle in Pennsylvania surpassed Atlantic
PA slots > AC slots Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingThe Atlantic City gaming numbers are in, and 2009 was definitely not pretty. From the AC Press: Casino revenue plunged for the third straight year in 2009, falling below $4 billion for the first time since 1997 as the soft economy and competition from neighboring slot parlors continue to erode the Atlantic City market. Year-end
Great news for Pennsylvanians who like to play table games, bad news for Atlantic City, as Pennsylvania has, to no one’s surprise, approved table gaming. Here’s the reaction from the AC Press: Pennsylvania’s slot parlors won’t stop at table games as they prepare to evolve into Atlantic City-style resort casinos in a fierce battle with
Here’s a holiday update on the status of Pinnacle’s much-ballyhooed Atlantic City project. Remember the billboards? From the AC Press: The site has become yet another vacant city lot, a prominent symbol of broken promises and the weak economy.Fences line the gravel lot dotted with weeds and a few scattered slabs of old concrete. Local
Post-Pinnacle AC=Post-war Berlin Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingAtlantic City has some new competition, or at least a refurbished version of old competition. From the AC Press: While the atmosphere of the stylishly named Parx Casino may feature some European or Asian-inspired elegance, the crowd will have a distinctly Philly flavor. When this new $250 million slots parlor opens its doors Friday, it
Sunday afternoon in the Parx Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingThis is a well-written NY Times article about where Atlantic City is today, even if it’s the same song we’ve been hearing for decades now: Just a few years ago, Atlantic City was boomtown U.S.A. Day-tripping retirees plunked quarter after quarter into slot machines at the casino warehouses lining the Boardwalk. The city was in
More death spiral talk in AC Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingThose of you familiar with Ventnor might lament the passing of an age: that aluminum section of boardwalk is being replaced, at last, with plain old wood. From the AC Press: About two blocks of Ventnor's Boardwalk near the Atlantic City line are so odd because the surface is made of aluminum, not wood. Those
Metal b’walk too heavy for Ventnor Read More »
atlantic cityCasinos in Atlantic City continue to post revenue declines, as the July number prove. From the AC Press: Casino revenue sank to its lowest level in 12 years in July, another ominous sign that there will be no summer turnaround for the troubled gaming industry. In what is ordinarily the biggest money-making month on the
Here’s something to remind us that an oceanfront view can be great, but an oceanfront smell isn’t always the best. From the AC Press: Local beach patrols reported spotting mussels along area beaches Sunday, but so far there have been no problems. Atlantic City Beach Patrol Chief Rod Aluise said there were some mussels on
Yes the Tropicana Atlantic City, which was “repossessed” by the Casino Control Commission over a year and a half ago, has finally been sold…to Carl Icahn. From the AC Press: Tropicana Casino and Resort, once expected to fetch $1 billion or more, was sold today for $200 million to a group of lenders headed by
Our long national nightmare is over Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingYou can probably order a margarita at the Shell, but Trump Marina isn’t turning into Margaritaville anytime soon. From the
Marina not wasting away Read More »
atlantic city, news about gambling