Atlantic Club Casino NJ to Close January 13

Back in April we predicted two things about online gambling in New Jersey and were (partially) mistaken about one, and correct about the other. The first educated guess was that Caesars would be the first to offer online games. That was partially wrong because although they offered games at the same moment as five other casinos (making them not second) it was actually Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa who received the first license. Oh well, win some and lose some, right? A tie is not a win unless you bet on “Tie”. The second guess was about whether PokerStars would have any place in the emerging market. Little did we know at that time the extensive fall-out that would come from a NO answer, nor the bone-headedness of hedge fund managers who invest in casinos.

Although it is nice to be “right” we take no joy in the fact that not only was the PokerStars (Oldford Group) application denied for the reasons we proffered, but the Atlantic Club owners, Colony Capital went all in with their half billion dollar investment and ended up losing the place altogether. According to the AP, Caesars will be buying the building and gutting it to reduce competition and Tropicana will be getting the machines – all for around $25 million.

Not only will Atlantic City lose a very decent Locals casino that offered tremendous value for your money – over 1,600 hard working employees will be out on their ears. Some of these people have dedicated three decades of their lives as loyal employees to the Atlantic Club Casino Resort. You may know some of them by name, or at least by their faces. Let’s hope that somewhere in the bowels of Caesars Entertainment Corporation there beats the heart of human compassion as it did 75 years ago when this company with over $26 billion in assets started in Reno Nevada. But it’s not that simple, is it.

In the second quarter of this year Caesars also posted over $27 billion in liabilities for an upside down balance sheet showing total equity of $-850 million. It’s pretty hard to write a Christmas check worth a year’s wages to each of the 1,659 people who will lose their jobs when the money is not on your balance sheet, and it’s not the responsible thing for a corporation who answers to their share holders to do. It would just be nice, that’s all – and it is possible.

Now there are 11 casinos (we will not predict anything about Revel) and Pennsylvania has 12. If you are in the area and want to see the faces and make the acquaintance of some of the wonderful people who have served us at the Atlantic Club over the years, please stop in before the doors close on January 13th. And please, tip well.

 

~~~The Atlantic Club Casino Hotel property was originally opened on December 12, 1980 as the Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino by casino mogul Steve Wynn.  Wynn later sold it to Bally Manufacturing (the slot machine maker) who renamed the property Bally’s Grand Hotel and Casino. It was renamed Atlantic City Hilton after Hilton Hotels acquired Bally, and renamed again to ACH Casino Resort after Hilton ended licensing for the property. On February 7, 2012, the casino was rebranded as The Atlantic Club Casino Hotel.~~~

 

As long as the casino is open, our Atlantic Club Casino Hotel review page will be too. If you would like to comment, there is a forum facility near the bottom of the page.