Nj Casino Closing
Atlantic City casinos remain closed because of the coronavirus
After years of ups and downs, Atlantic City's casinos are facing another setback. All nine of them remain closed because of the coronavirus and most of the people who worked in them have lost their jobs.
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By August 18, Revel Casino Hotel announced the official closing. The hotel, resort, and casino closed permanently on September 2, 2014. Revel was the third Atlantic City casino to close in 2014, after Showboat Hotel Casino closed on August 31, following the Atlantic Club Hotel Casino. There is an alternative to the slot machines of Atlantic City as NJ online casino gambling rises in popularity. Beginning Monday, March 16 at 8 p.m. ET, casinos in New Jersey have been ordered to. The 39-story main tower of the former Trump Plaza hotel-casino on the Atlantic City, N.J., boardwalk, sold to investor Carl Icahn in 2016, will be imploded in February by a Philadelphia general. The casino plans to close. Trump joins Showboat and The Atlantic Club, which are also shuttering, while the brand new Revel casino is in bankruptcy. Estimates on how many jobs are at stake range. Grow NJ is a powerful job creation and retention incentive program that strengthens New Jersey's competitive edge in the increasingly global marketplace. Businesses that are creating or retaining jobs in New Jersey may be eligible for tax credits ranging from $500 to $5,000 per job, per year; with bonus credits ranging from $250 to $3,000 per.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – After years of ups and downs, Atlantic City’s casinos are facing another setback.
All nine of them remain closed because of the coronavirus and most of the people who worked in them have lost their jobs.
“It’s very quiet out here,” said Scott Heath, a food server at Caesars.
Heath said he’s worked in the city’s casinos for 40 years, but he’s not used to seeing the area so desolate.
“There’s no traffic. On a day like this, you would have traffic. You would have the jitneys operational going both ways. Yeah, it’s very eerie,” Heath said.
Scott Heath has worked in the city's casinos for 40 years.
The casinos have been closed for nearly nine weeks – the longest closure in Atlantic City’s history.
“When we closed in the past, it’s been for a short time. When we closed for [Hurricane] Sandy and the state budget not being approved, we were closed for less than a week,” said Steve Callender, the president of the Casino Association of New Jersey.
According to the state’s Division of Gaming Enforcement, over 26,000 people worked in Atlantic City’s casinos as of March 1, and most of them have been laid off.
“Certainly, the most unique time in my 40-plus-year career,” said Jim Allen, the chairman of Hard Rock International and CEO of Seminole Gaming.
Allen said it could take a while for the city to recover financially.
All nine casinos have been closed for nearly nine weeks – the longest closure in Atlantic City’s history.
“It’s going to be a very, very slow and gradual process of coming back. I do think that the long-term recovery could be close to a year,” Allen said.
The American Gaming Association estimated the casino closures have been costing Atlantic City $540 million a month.
But, according to Allen, safety has remained the top priority. “This is not about just making money; this is about being very cautious. We are dealing with human life here.”
With no reopening date in sight, industry experts have been preparing for the future once the state gives casinos the green light to open their doors.
“The casino is going to be much different than people are used to seeing it,” Callender said. “If you’re playing slots or tables, you won’t sit next to someone you that don’t know. The employees will all be wearing masks.”
And, forget those casino crowds.
Atlantic City's casinos remain closed with no reopening date set.
“It literally could be anywhere from 20 percent of capacity, but certainly no greater than 50 percent,” Allen said.
Heath asserted that he’s used to change in the area. “There’s been a lot of ups and downs.”
Nj Casinos Closing
This was the fifth time the casinos in Atlantic City have closed.
“We always come back, and I am confident that we will, that we will persevere. We’re pretty strong here,” Heath said.
By Christie Duffy
Correspondent
Pink slips went out to Trump Plaza workers today. The casino plans to close.
Trump joins Showboat and The Atlantic Club, which are also shuttering, while the brand new Revel casino is in bankruptcy.
Estimates on how many jobs are at stake range from 4,000 to 7,000.
“There’s a lot of people sitting around right now wondering what they are gonna do. I’m sure people are already making plans to move out of the city, to move out of the area because they’re not gonna be able to afford their homes. They’re not gonna be able to afford cars to get around,” said Issac Simmons, head chef of Bar A Trump Plaza.
The latest numbers show casino revenues at Trump are down by nearly 30 percent.
Workers say inside the casino, it’s a dismal day.
“As I walked through this morning, I noticed a lot of tears and hugs being given out. The customers are embracing the workers here more today,” Simmons said.
Only weeks remain, according to a Trump spokesman, who says, “Management and its parent company have been reviewing alternatives for the property. Although no final decision has been made, the company expects that it will terminate the operations on or shortly after Sept. 16, 2014.”
Atlantic City is now in danger of losing one-third of its casinos. One out of four casino workers could soon be unemployed. And it’s all happening in a time period of less than nine months.
“It’s a very tough time. The economy in the region is not great,” said Dr. Israel Posner.
Posner is with the Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism at Stockton College. Posner says whats happening in AC won’t necessarily stay in AC. He says the economic impact could have ramifications for the whole state.
“The state of New Jersey depends on tourism for one-tenth of jobs, directly or indirectly, one in 10 people. It’s about a $40 billion industry,” Posner said.
But he says the industry has been cannibalized. Casinos have opened all around us in nearby states, eating into AC’s share of the market. There is also talk of casinos coming to North Jersey — in the Meadowlands or Jersey City.
Nj Casino Closings
Last week Assemblyman Chris Brown and workers rallied on the boardwalk. He called for closing casinos to make every effort to sell.
So are there any buyers out there willing to swoop in and save all these jobs? Posner says he has heard there are some kicking the tires.
“If you look up and down the east coast, there are 26 million people that came to AC last year,” said Posner.
But can those numbers convince a buyer to place a bet on an Atlantic City casino? Most workers would likely hope so. Their stake is all in.