I just can't see going all the way to AC for sports betting. The overhead of a casino is much too high to sustain with marginal profit from sports betting. And if does turn out I am wrong, then the advantage AC had will slip away with competition, repeating what happened to AC earlier. Ultimately, sports gambling will be offered via convenient internet companies and AC will be stuck ("What are we going to do with these casinos?") The day of fortunes being made in casino operation is over.
No.
1
the best beaches in Jersey are in AC and I wish people would realize that.
2
So what happens to AC when sports betting comes to Philly, Delaware and NY state? Same old, same old.
Atlantic City is a ghastly place. I wouldn’t set foot in it again until all the casinos are gone.
1
Well demolished, Richard.
1
The classic shot of Atlantic City blight and billion dollar bankrupt casinos taken from the beach block of Rhode Island Ave. I remember walking down that block going to the beach as a kid when it had houses on it. The city ran out of luck 60 years ago.
2
Legalized gambling is everywhere now.
No need to go to Atlantic City anymore when if you live in the Philly area.
2
My grandmother, who spent many weeks at Atlantic City and stayed at Chalfonte/Haddon Hall as a beachgoer, loved taking up the casinos in her later years on their offers for bus, buffet, and some quarters for the slots $10 or $20 up front. Spend a day at the beach with food and get paid for it!
2
It's pathetic that legalizing sports gambling is what passes for economic development and urban renewal in America. That we base a significant portion of any state's economy on fleecing people out of their money for some illusion of winning big is bad enough. Gambling is a fool's sport and a stupid waste of time and effort, not to mention MONEY.
18
I visited Atlantic City for the first time in 1978, and it was depressed then. It's hard to stay ahead as the only purveyor of what is illegal elsewhere if you don't have any inherent advantages of location or place. For a brief time in the early 1980's, it had an East Coast monopoly, and then came Foxwoods, which also then went through bankruptcy. I suspect that if it weren't for the game of Monopoly, most people wouldn't read this article.
1
"Sports gambling"......the perfect combination of testicular stupidity and economic bankruptcy.
What a wretched endeavor.
20
Billions of dollars of sports betting are generated annually in illegal sports betting. All major sporting leagues recognize that legal and regulated sports betting will directly or indirectly increase their revenue stream. The fun of sports betting is enhanced by the combination of betting and watching in a first class casino. SCOTUS has given Atlantic City a golden opportunity to revitalize.Since Donald Trump is otherwise engaged things look good for Atlantic City.
5
Have you ever been to Atlantic City? I intentionally drive out of my way just to avoid looking at the place. AC is the worst possible combination of Vegas and the Jersey Shore. I don't understand how anyone is surprised when the tourism industry tanked. I'd happily take a Wendover/Asbury Park hybrid first. At least Asbury Park still has the Stone Pony. Good grief. These investors are either joking or criminal. Perhaps both.
3
Who will need to go to a hotel casino to bet on sports? AC is off the grid and will likely remain so. Its inconvenient, and offers nothing other then hotel rooms. There's nothing there but the hotels, oh and the seasonal beach. Boring. AC is boring!
But how sad that gambling is again being touted as a financial lift for such places as AC. Gambling! We know the demographics of those who frequent casinos - and its not those with a lot of expendable cash. And sports gamblers are notoriously prone to addiction.
Let them eat cake!
4
Getting desperate poor people and addicts to spend their money, knowing that the rich end up with the biggest gain, is a bad government model for revenue.
7
I had this idea and I’m not being facetious. There are still 640 empty rooms in Atlantic City New Jersey and Trump’s name is already on all of them. Yes I’m talking about Trump Palace. Atlantic City is a slum decimated to this day by the moral and fiscal bankruptcy of Donald Trump. Bring NEW life to this place. What if we housed and processed refugees right there in New Jersey where Immigration could systematically interview and examine and track them? We wouldn’t have to separate families or even imprison them. Give them ankle monitors and the freedom to move about and their whereabouts will be accounted for. The casino floors had restaurants. That means kitchens. There is plenty of floor space that, with almost no construction, we can convert into classrooms and medical facilities for screening, vaccinating and treating newcomers. And there are auditoriums that could be used by the court system. All of this would require personnel of course. That would mean jobs and opportunity for the people who already live there. The infrastructure is in place. Let this be the Ellis Island of today. I am not talking about a place to live, just a place to land. We have empty storefronts and ghost towns all over America and not just because of Trump. Migration is just a part of human nature and evolution. There is a whole city on that island and it’s on life support. Let us begin in Trump Palace because it is the right thing to do. Okay; plus the irony. Okay
19
great idea!!!!
2
Forty years ago Atlantic City was given a revival temporarily by casino gambling. Then casinos and gambling gradually spread across the US making this 'gamble' much less successful over time. The same is likely to repeat with sports betting, only in a more compressed time frame in our information/data on demand era.
4
trump touched it and he ruined it. It wasn’t in good shape anyway, but his touch makes everything worse. He is having the same effect on the US government and America as a whole. Raze it and create a seafowl sanctuary with pre-built reefs for the shortly to take place reclamation by the ocean. Don’t let any trump anywhere near it once Mar-a-Lago is beneath the briny after the sea levels rise.
14
"She said she preferred less-glitzy places like Bally’s, where she said she could stay two nights for as little as $50 after riding a bus from the Port Authority in Manhattan."
I couldn't resist checking up on this fantastic deal!!
Doesn't exist.
4
You do a story on the potential for a turnaround and then you deliberately publish the bleakest of photos. Why do people -- including the media -- root for Atlantic City to fail?
As a native, I may be biased but why is there no recognition here of AC's indigenous natural resources -- it's spun-sugar beaches, clean air and ocean, beautiful boardwalk...
Why do you plant the seed for failure instead of rooting for a community trying to turn itself around?
21
Because the people who are promoting these ideas are hoping to make billions on an annual basis. They don't care about making the broader area prosper.
3
Hopeless, as there are too many vastly more convenient options out there for gamblers from each of the main metropolitan areas Atlantic City needs to draw from. The better solution - for New Jersey - is to admit times have changed, and authorize full casino gambling in Newark or Jersey city etc. Such a move would bleed New York gamblers white, draining the life out of every casino and racino within a day's drive of Manhattan.
New York's politicians have them the gift of taking no action on sports betting. They should approve a sports book on the northern part of Route 17 to take more money away from New York. Legalized marijuana will be another money maker for New Jersey. It will take New York years to get that going. They'd prefer to let the underground economy take in the money.
2
Make Atlantic City Great Again ....errr....Trump casinos? bankruptcy ??
oh never mind !!
16
Atlantic City is a joke. Resorts International was the start and then the Casino Commission trying to control the whole mess, set up Trump with all the eggs in one basket. When Trump bankrupted all his holdings there the banks were forced to bail him out or face losing everything on their end. Trump met with Florio and the bankers in Trenton and came away laughing at all of them, just the way he's laughing at all of us now. So now the sports betting is supposed to save Atlantic City along with medical marijuana. Atlantic City was a great place to vacation back in the 30's and 40's, with the diving horse and the steel pier. Just a fading memory along with the casino commission.
11
It's a cesspool.
Besides, our new multi-millionaire governor is going to end up stalling this effort and close the government because he wants us to pay even more taxes. He doesn't need to lounge on our beaches. He can just jet to one of his houses in Italy or Germany if we don't get a budget.
1
A gambler and his/her money is soon parted......
4
Will Trump invite the entire losing Russian World Cup team to the White House ?
6
"Frankie Valli ... to attract a wave of younger, more curious visitors,"
LOL!!!
25
Frankie Valli is 82, the new 79!
10
Best comment I have read in NYT for last 2 months on any subject.
4
I'm thinking Pittbull was meant for the younger crowd and Frankie Valli was just put in there to show they were still catering to the over 70's as well, but was very funny although Jerry Lee Lewis is still performing at 82and has fans of all ages as does Dylan who may perform there as well.
Nothing can save AC, let the ocean reclaim it
13
I worked at Resorts as a dealer and then a Floor Supervisor for 20 odd years, my daughter worked at Caesers, my son worked at Resorts after graduating from college. Atlantic City was humming. I lived in Cherry Hill N.J. and commuted daily. Best job ever with the best people ever. Knock off the slander. Atlantic City was a wonderful place to work. The suburbs and towns nearby were lovely and still are. I object to the one sided criticism. Wonderful beaches, food , entertainment and close to the huge NYC/Philly market. Las Vegas is the only game in town for the population of the West, it's hot, crowded and over hyped. If you Easterners want some fun go to Atlantic City when they get ready to party again.
6
Atlantic City is a dump with casinos which are frequented by degenerate gamblers.
I say, let them
Raise taxes and everyone goes crazy. Put up a casino and the suckers just hand over their money by playing games which are rigged from their inception to favor the house.
18
The photographs by John Taggart were exceptional.
4
To answer the headline, my left pinkie toe could do more for Atlantic City than Trump did.
9
If I recall correctly AC and the state welcomed the grifter Trump into their tent and set a few conditions. Trump and his father violated those conditions.
Trump also promised to not use junk bonds to finance those failed enterprises. He did and cost the city and state many jobs.
I hope the city does rebound and learn a lesson the voters also need to learn-stay away from carnival barkers.
7
I grew up in South Jersey, when Atlantic City--pre-casinos-- was still clinging to simply being a "city" with something more to offer than the small towns and regional malls within striking distance.
With all the experience we have in the US now with casinos, and zero understanding of how to build industry and create jobs, the notion gambling might still, again, resuscitate AC...is beyond any stretch of the imagination.
9
These plans seem to assume that Atlantic City is the only place outside Vegas that will ever have sports betting. That's not something I would bet my money on.
6
I lived in Ventnor, the town that borders AC to the south. Casinos are the bane of existence. They promise the Sun, the Moon and the stars, and pour money into the beachfront and ignore everything west of Pacific Ave which looks like a firebombed out tenement complex. For those of us that lived through it, it was a preview of what then Casino failure Trump would in the future be doing to our Country.
20
Those who willingly dance with the Devil always get burnt, don't they? I remember when the Legalize Casinos referendum passed in the mid-1970s and how happy it made so many property owners who were promised lower real estate taxes (yeah, right) and huge resale values...
2
My family owned real estate in nearby Ocean City so I grew up riding my 10-speed from there to the Inlet in AC and back. Atlantic City's heyday of Nucky Thompson, Jimmy Darmody and his mother is over and will never return, even though casinos were thought to be a decadent cash cow starting in 1976. The Atlantic City boardwalk is a fantastic place to ride a bike though I haven't been on two wheels there for 30 years. Why doesn't the city exploit its flat situation, constant wind and open bike lanes on the boardwalk and elsewhere?
4
46% of the American people don’t have enough ready-cash on hand to cover an emergency expense of $400.
So naturally what they need and are now going to get is a vast increase in sports betting.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/05/25/the-shocking-numb...
25
It’s just more efficient to tax the poor directly.
13
Isn’t the endpoint on this train internet sports betting? States will get full revenue there without offering incentives or spending tax dollars. The most informed discussion by actual casinos indicated sports betting would add more buzz and willingness to spend from existing customers. Las Vegas does not think it will add traffic. Why should Atlantic City think otherwise? Oh, that’s right. NJ Government has entered the discussion.
2
Why would anyone go to Atlantic City when other casinos are closer to them? Transportation to Atlantic City is poor. Atlantic City restaurants are mediocre, and walking a block off the Boardwalk risks your life. The slum that is Atlantic City might work when it was the only gaming town on the East Coast. But now, Atlantic City is an unappealing alternative to casinos that are closer to where people live.
Las Vegas is safer and more appealing than Atlantic City, Vegas has much better restaurants and entertainment than Atlantic City, and there are other things to do in Vegas.
12
If you think AC restaurants are mediocre, then you’re completely out of touch with what’s going on there. It has some of the best restaurants to be found anywhere. You could eat in a different one every night for a month and still hardly scratch the surface of all the great dining establishments. The revival of AC is still a work in progress, but there is a lot of new business investment taking place and the outlook is very promising. Hard Rock, Ocean Resort and Stockton University’s new AC campus are all game changers.
5
What is there to do In Las Vegas other then walk in and out of casinos? There are so many clip joints for you to lose your change that you must go broke. No beach, no big city nearby and throngs of people wandering the streets. Go there and see for yourself. A.C. needs a better Public Relations program.
1
They will get a lot of people from Philadelphia especially when the Eagles are playing, so I suppose that right now Philly sports station are flooded with sports betting ads. The trip is too long from NYC, even Monmouth park is too long, but when sports betting comes to the meadowlands I'm there.
5
The NJ Transit Coast Line stops at Monmouth Park, so it's not that far.
1
Atlantic City? Too far in the middle of nowhere. If you could move A.C. closer to a population it might have a chance.
Sports betting is soon to be available everywhere 24/7. People should go to Atlantic City because?
Well, it has a nice beach...
13
You have it wrong Las Vegas is in the middle of nowhere. I lived in both places. Vegas has a better public relations campaign. It’s casino or nothing. A 2 bit hockey team excites the population. No comparison. Stop the cynicism. Enjoy Atlantic City and wish it success.
1