It’s kind of like a gambling version of an old business model during the fast-food hamburger wars of the 1970s: Burger King would always build across the street from McDonald’s, and vice versa. Only in this case, it’s the opening of two new casinos this summer.
Last month, officials from Hard Rock International held a simultaneous, three-city press conference — in New York, Philadelphia and Atlantic City— and said the property once known as the Trump Taj Majal will open on June 28. Jim Allen, the Atlantic City-area native who began his casino career on the Boardwalk and rose to become chairman, CEO and president of Hard Rock International and Seminole Gaming, told reporters the opening date is etched in stone. Just a couple of blocks away, the other new casino to debut this summer is taking a more low key approach to its opening.
The Ocean Resort Casino is being repurposed out of the towering $2.4 billion blue tower formerly known as the Revel Casino Hotel, which went down in financial flames after opening in 2012, going through two bankruptcies and then closing to be sold at an auction