Use North Jersey Gaming Dollars to Rebuild AC?

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The Inquirer reports that New Jersey Senate President Stephen Sweeney is proposing using money from new casinos in NorthJersey to rebuild Atlantic City for its post-casino future. A nonprofit board of “top business leaders” would oversee the effort.

The proposed board would include “business people that know how to make business happen, not government,” Sweeney said during an hour-long interview Wednesday with the Inquirer Editorial Board.

He said he was not aware of a model for such a board and emphasized that nothing had been finalized. Possible investments include repurposing the casino buildings or knocking them down to bring new businesses in, he said.

“I just don’t want to give money to government, because I know what they do with it,” said Sweeney, a Democrat from Gloucester County. “They make government bigger.”

Gov. Chris Christie‘s office declined to comment.