Trump Plaza Has Officially Closed
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The end came for Trump Plaza this morning.
As expected, the Atlantic City casino shut down its gambling operations shortly before 6 a.m. — reducing the total number of casinos in town to eight; Atlantic City started 2014 with 12 casinos.
Unlike Revel, which opened just over two years ago and is still considered new and luxurious, or the still-profitable Showboat, shuttered by its owner in the name of reducing competition for the remaining casinos in town, the demise of Trump Plaza could be seen a long way off.
Despite its prime location at the heart of the Boardwalk and the end of the Atlantic City Expressway (its motto has been “The Center Of It All”), gamblers have been abandoning Trump Plaza for newer, ritzier casinos for years. Its owners, Trump Entertainment Resorts, let it deteriorate in recent years, particularly after a sale for the bargain-basement price of $20 million to a California firm fell through last year.
The Press of Atlantic City adds:
Trump Plaza, with about 1,000 workers, is the third Boardwalk casino-hotel to close since late August and the fourth since the start of the year. The four properties employed nearly 8,000 casino-hotel workers.
Trump Plaza has been on rocky financial footing recently. It posted a $4.7 million gross operating loss in 2013.
Things have been even worse this year. The casino-hotel reported a $7.4 million gross operating loss for the first half of 2014.
