Atlantic City at Renaissance point

Just as the current wave of redevelopment is about to crest, Atlantic City expects even more new projects in the next few years. Much like Steve Wynn's Mirage created the new Las Vegas in 1989, Borgata is pushing the city into new areas. From the AC Press:

Gaming consultant Harvey Perkins credits the new Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa for opening the industry's eyes to a new market - younger, hipper visitors willing to pay cash for a fun night in a high-end atmosphere.

'Since the opening of Borgata, Atlantic City has shown a different character of gamer. It has the potential to become more of an overnight destination, which, of course, requires investment,' said Perkins, a former casino executive.

Gaming companies and their investors are betting big that Perkins is right. Here is what they are planning:

Investment-banking giant Credit Suisse First Boston is prepared to pump $400 million into Donald Trump's casino company, which needs the cash to keep up with competitors' expansions. Priority one is an 800- to 1,000-room hotel tower at Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, Trump said.

Borgata, which opened eight months ago, is drawing plans to accommodate its overflow of visitors. Plans include five restaurants, meeting space, more gaming tables and slots, parking and 'a significant amount of retail space,' CEO Bob Boughner said. The project is expected to cost more than $200 million.

Harrah's Entertainment would like to add fifth and fourth hotel towers, respectively, to Harrah's Atlantic City and Showboat Casino-Hotel. This would be in addition to the towers each casino opened within the past two years. Likely cost - more than $200 million.

The Gordon Group, co-creator of th Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, is spending more than $140 million to develop the Pier at Caesars, a retail, dining and entertainment complex attached to Caesars Atlantic City where the Shops on Ocean One mall once stood.

Caesars this month broke ground on a $75 million parking garage that will provide 3,200 spaces for Caesars, Bally's Park Place, The Walk, the Pier at Caesars and Atlantic City Medical Center.
FULL STORY

Every time I tell someone I'm from Atllantic City, they feel the urge to tell me about its relative lack of development vis a vis the Strip. Hopefully when all this goes through the city will project a better image.
__________________________________________
Speaking of images and cities, I'm going to be up in Portland at the Western Political Science Association annual conference tomorrow. I'm giving a paper on the rise of the Las Vegas Strip. So the lack of updates is entirely understandable, but if I can get web access I'll try to add something.
Also, I'm slightly revamping the WSOP pages. I'm not adding content, but I'm giving them a cleaner look.
_____________________________________________
posted by Dave at 3:51 PM

Reality on Fremont

Take gambling and reality TV and combine them, and apparently you end up with money. From the Las Vegas SUN:

It's been a great six weeks for the new co-owners of downtown's Golden Nugget, Tim Poster and Tom Breitling said Sunday evening.
Since buying the property for $215 million and taking over control from MGM MIRAGE on Jan. 23, Golden Nugget operations have been 'far busier than we thought,' Breitling said.
The Golden Nugget's slots are believed to generate the state's highest daily win per machine, and Poster said there's been no falloff in performance since they bought the Fremont Street property.
'We're doing better than we projected,' Poster said.
One of the big factors driving the Golden Nugget's strong casino play has been the ongoing filming for 'The Casino,' a reality TV show on Poster, Breitling and their gambling joint planned for the Fox network.
Las Vegas SUN: Golden Nugget owners say TV show cameras draw gamblers

Poster and Brietling continue to hawk their "old Vegas with a new feel" line, and it seems to be working. With the World Series of Poker getting underway in April, downtown will be a very hot ticket indeed.
_________________________________________________
posted by Dave at 1:57 PM