The Atlantic Club Casino Hotel closed in January 2014, triggering other New Jersey resorts to close. They included Trump Plaza, Revel, and Showboat, which closed after several months. The Trump Taj Mahal closed later in October 2016.
The former casino has been vacant for eight years. But, its owner intends to transform its guestrooms into high-end condominiums, almost nine years after it hosted guests.
NJ Advance Media revealed on Thursday that Rocco Sebastiani, the property's owner, and Colosseo Development Group, Inc, his New York real estate firm, want to upgrade the casino hotel. But they will reveal more details about the project in December.
The building's interior is largely unknown, but some people have cited its exterior several times for safety violations in the recent past. For instance, the Atlantic Club's porte-cochere ceiling collapsed in 2017. Part of the building's exterior fell on the Boardwalk the following spring, threatening pedestrian safety.
The Club's Past
Steve Wynn built the Atlantic Club, and it started operating as the Golden Club in 1980. Yet, it soon became Rat Pack's hangout joint with Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, and Frank Sinatra amongst some of its regular guests.
New Jersey's politics bored Wynn, and he decided to leave the Atlantic City gaming industry. Bally Manufacturing bought the Atlantic Club from Mirage Resorts in 1987, and it was rebranded to Bally's Grand.
Hilton Hotels bought the casino from Bally Manufacturing in 1996 and renamed it Atlantic City Hilton. It terminated the licensing agreement it made with Colony Capital, which bought Atlantic City Hilton from Hilton Hotels in 2005. The new owner renamed the property ACH Casino Resort.
Atlantic City businesses had reduced sales as gaming's popularity increased in the East Coast states. Financial constraints made ACH Casino Resort fall. Yet, it later rebranded to Atlantic Club in 2012 in an attempt to make it more friendly to the local community.
Atlantic Club officially shut down in early 2014. Tropicana Entertainment and Caesars Entertainment jointly bought it and all its assets for $23.4 million in bankruptcy.
Caesars retained its physical property while Tropicana purchased its player database, table games, and slot machines. Caesars Entertainment sold Atlantic Club to TJM Properties, a Florida real estate company, in May 2014 for $13.5 million.
TJM Properties managed the property until 2019, when Colosseo bought it for an undisclosed price. The former Atlantic Club Casino has been chosen for different projects of late.
A potential buyer floated an indoor waterpark in it in 2017, but they didn't achieve their goal. Also, Stockton University wanted to buy the property to expand the Atlantic City campus in 2018.
Some people claim that there is a slim chance of the luxury condominiums' plan materializing. But Colosseo will offer a clear outlook once it reveals its vision in December. Sebastiani stated in 2019, after buying the former casino, that they were eager to work in the city and restore the gaming property's glory.
