Atlantic City’s Newest Casino Resort Heads to Federal Court to Seek Bankruptcy Protection
By Matt Rooney | The Save Jersey Blog
Who didn’t see this coming, Save Jerseyans?
We sure did, as did the general public who opposed the tax break bailout plan from day one. But that doesn’t mean today’s news is satisfying in any way. Quite the opposite.
Revel’s announcement that it will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection next month (the type that allows for reorganization, not liquidation/dissolution) should surprise no one and represents a major blow to a significant source of state tax revenue. Our contributors worried about the likelihood of today’s turn of events all the way back when the Revel bailout was first proposed, and then again in April 2010, when Morgan Stanley bailed.
The Revel management still isn’t losing faith. According to the AP, “[t]he voluntary, prepackaged bankruptcy envisioned for late March will wipe away about two-thirds of its $1.5 billion in debt by converting more than $1 billion of it into equity for lenders.”
I’m less confident. Where’s the path forward post-bankruptcy? This South Jerseyans hasn’t lost faith Atlantic City, but I sure as hell don’t see a sustainable economic turnaround in the making when our leaders pin their hopes for recovery on subsidizing an outmoded business strategy with taxpayer dollars. If no one is coming to the casinos due to increased competition and crime concerns, simply building bigger/newer casinos won’t solve a darn thing.
Revel’s woes are just the latest example of big govt striking out. Business models fail for a reason. Bailouts forestall necessary changes. That’s a losing strategy every time, Save Jerseyans.
Government makes the worst investments. How about spending money marketing the entire city instead of one pathetic Casino? How about creating a transportation shuttle for young people to get to and from AC in one night. For free! Between bridge tolls, expressway tolls, gas and parking, the AC experience is about the same as dating a woman who makes you buy the ingredients for the dinner she cooks, for you.
@Matt Ha! Well put.
TO OUTRAGIOUSLY ELEGANT & EXPENSIVE FOR AC—DOESN'T FIT N.J.
There are free shuttle buses to all the casinos from the Atlantic City Rail Terminal.
The Guv wants to keep Revel alive. Throw another $250 million of taxpayer money at it while neglecting the needs of the working and middle-class! Bring on sports betting-keep throwing away your money to the 1%.