Tropicana Casino and Resort Atlantic City
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| Tropicana Casino and Resort Atlantic City | |
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| Facts and statistics | |
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| Address | 2831 Boardwalk Atlantic City, NJ 08401 |
| Opening date | November 23, 1981 |
| Theme | Old Havana |
| No. of rooms | 2,133[1] |
| Total gaming space | 148,000 sq ft (13,700 m2) |
| Signature attractions | The Quarter |
| Casino type | Land-based |
| Owner | Tropicana Entertainment |
| Previous names | TropWorld |
| Years renovated | 1996, 2003, 2004, 2007 |
| Website | www.tropicana.net, /www.Tropicananightlife.com |
The Tropicana Casino and Resort Atlantic City is a casino and hotel located at Brighton Avenue and the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It is owned by Tropicana Entertainment. The Tropicana is, in part, one of the largest hotels in New Jersey, featuring 2,133 rooms, and is in part a 148,000-square-foot (13,700 m2) casino. Tropicana has over 3,200 slot machines, 170 table games, including a Poker Room, simulcast and Asian gaming pit complete with a noodle bar. As one of the premier properties in Atlantic City the Tropicana, home of The Quarter, features more than 20 restaurants, 26 shops, 13 nightclubs, bars and lounges, four entertainment facilities, including a comedy club, IMAX Theatre, 2,000 seat showroom and an intimate showroom, full service salon and spa, indoor and outdoor pools and more. Tropicana is located on the beach and Boardwalk.
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[edit] The Quarter at Tropicana
The Quarter at Tropicana is the premier dining, shopping and entertainment complex in Atlantic City. The Quarter features nine restaurants, 22 shops, 10 bars and lounges, a spa and the city’s only movie theater – the IMAX Theater. Opened in November 2004, The Quarter also features a hotel tower, parking garage and meeting space.
[edit] Tropicana Diamond Club
The Diamond Club is the casino comp card for Tropicana Atlantic City. It has 3 levels: Diamond, V.I.P. Member, and Trillions Club. The details of the Trillions Club are only given to members who qualify. In August 2009, Tropicana debuted a new players’ card, the IN Card. The IN Card is a players’ card for the younger guests featuring benefits based on nightlife rewards. Both cards are free to obtain by visiting the Diamond Club at Tropicana Casino & Resort.
[edit] History
[edit] Ramada
The Tropicana was the concept of Ramada Inns in the 1980s. It was built on the former site of the Ambassador Hotel. After paying $20 million for the old Ambassador Hotel in Atlantic City, the company released plans to renovate the property and convert it into a 546 room hotel and 60,000-square-foot (5,600 m2) casino with amenities including a 1,200 seat dinner theater, 1,000 seat ballroom and other public facilities.
Executives at Ramada were forced to alter their plans when their design was denied approval by the New Jersey Casino Control Commission and Governor Brendan Byrne, both of whom had become tired of casino operators doing "patch and paint" jobs instead of building totally new properties, a main reason for the legalization of casinos in Atlantic City. Ramada was ordered to demolish the old building and start from the ground up, and the company threatened to appeal the decision in court. An agreement was finally reached between Ramada and the New Jersey Casino Control Commission to only use the steel framework of the Ambassador while changing the exterior appearance of the hotel. The ultimate result of these design changes was a two-year delay in the resorts opening as well as millions of dollars in cost overruns that pushed the final price tag of the resort to almost $400 million.
In order to take advantage of its recent purchase of the original Tropicana Resort & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip, Ramada officials decided to call their new property the Tropicana Atlantic City in order to capitalize on the recognizable name. The Tropicana Atlantic City officially opened on November 23, 1981 with 521 guest rooms and casino space. Shortly after opening a unique indoor amusement area called Tivoli Pier was built and within a year the name of the resort was changed to TropWorld Casino and Entertainment Resort.[2]
[edit] Aztar
In 1989, Ramada hotels spun off their gaming properties into the new Aztar Corporation. Aztar focused much of its capital investment projects on the Atlantic City Tropicana. In 1995 Aztar commenced construction of a new 604 room hotel tower as well as renovations to the existing rooms and casino space. Tivoli Pier was closed to make way for a new poker, keno and horse racing simulcast area, and the property reverted back to the old Tropicana name.
The company followed this expansion with another project completed in 2004 that added the 502 room Havana Tower, a new 2,400 space parking garage, 22,000 square feet (2,000 m2) of meeting and convention space and a new retail and restaurant venue. This project is called The Quarter at Tropicana and is designed in an old Havana theme meant to evoke images of that city. The goal of this project was to turn the Tropicana into an integrated casino resort reminiscent of the megaresorts built in Las Vegas during the 1990s. Aztar also timed this expansion to take advantage of the new interest in the Atlantic City casino market caused by the opening of the Borgata Resort in 2003.
[edit] Columbia Sussex
In May 2005 Aztar Corporation agreed to be acquired by the Columbia Sussex Corporation for $2.75 billion. The New Jersey Casino Control Commission granted Columbia Sussex an Interim Authorization to operate the resort on November 3, 2006. The acquisition concluded in January 2007 with the Aztar properties being merged into Columbia Sussex's gaming subsidiary, which was renamed Tropicana Entertainment LLC. In the first four months after the acquisition, Columbia Sussex reduced the number of employees at the Tropicana by 15 percent.[3]
[edit] 2007 casino license renewal
On November 20, 2007 the New Jersey Casino Control Commission initiated hearings for the renewal of the casino license and whether its parent companies Adamar of New Jersey and Columbia Sussex were suitable to hold a casino license. Critics including Fred Buro the Tropicana's former General Manager testified before the Casino Control Commission on November 28, 2007 that Columbia Sussex CEO William Yung III had ordered him to make $40 million in payroll cuts and when he opposed the layoffs Yung became irate and fired him.[4] The UNITE HERE Local 54 Union which opposes the licensing has been given permission by the Casino Control Commission to participate in the hearing. It was expected that the Union would present its own evidence and witnesses.[5][6]
On December 4, 2007, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement recommended to the Casino Control Commission that it approve the relicensing of the Tropicana and find Columbia Sussex suitable as an owner with a few provisos. Under the recommendation, the casino license would be for only one year instead of the customary five years, and the Tropicana would have to provide New Jersey regulators with advance notice of proposed layoffs, disclose any of the company's gaming violations in other states, report details of its debt agreements, and maintain an independent audit committee. On December 12, 2007, the New Jersey Casino Control Commission rejected this recommendation by a 4 to 1 vote and denied the application of renewal for the Tropicana casino. The commission cited the management's "abysmal" regulatory compliance as well as a "lack of business ability... financial responsibility... and a lack of good character, honesty, and integrity." The property was immediately placed under the control of a trustee, former New Jersey State Supreme Court Justice Gary Stein, until it could be sold. This was only the second time in twenty-nine years that the commission has denied a license renewal.[7] Lawyers were expected to appeal.[7][8][9]
[edit] 2009 sale
The bankruptcy sale of the Tropicana Casino and Resort to a group of creditors led by Carl Icahn was approved by a bankruptcy court on June 12, 2009. Other owners now include Black Diamond Capital Management and Schultze Asset Management. The acquisition was in exchange for $200 million worth of debt.[10] On August 26, 2009, the Commission approved Tropicana Entertainment Inc. as the property's new owner. The Commission stressed that the new owner is not the same company as the former owner, Tropicana Entertainment LLC. The decision enabled the property to operate under the same corporate umbrella as other Tropicana properties in Nevada, Mississippi, Louisiana and Indiana.[11]
[edit] Expansion
A major controversy involving expansion occurred in 1995 when the Tropicana (then known as TropWorld), the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority and the city attempted to acquire adjacent land owned by Joseph Milano at 1 South Brighton Avenue for a surface parking lot using eminent domain.[12] A lawsuit was filed by Milano and his family in New Jersey Appeals Court (Milano v. Adamar of New Jersey d/b/a TropWorld Casino and Entertainment Resort, Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, City of Atlantic City, et at.) to stop the use of eminent domain, a New Jersey appeals court agreed with the Milano family and issued a restraining order preventing TropWorld and the CRDA from proceeding.[citation needed] As of 2009 Joseph Milano and members of his family still live in the building built in 1935 by his father.
The previous owners of the Tropicana, Columbia Sussex Corporation, had announced plans to construct an additional 1,000 hotel rooms in a new tower to be designed as a "hotel-within-a-hotel", with a boutique feeling. This expansion would have kept the Tropicana New Jersey's largest hotel at over 3,000 rooms. Most of this project was scrapped after Columbia Sussex was ousted as owner when its casino license was not renewed.[citation needed]
[edit] Notes
- ^ http://tropicanaac.casinocity.com/
- ^ TropWorld changes name back to Tropicana
- ^ [1]
- ^ Fired Trop Exec Says He Opposed Layoffs (Houston Chronicle, retrieved November 28, 2007)
- ^ Local 54 files to be part of Tropicana re-licensing hearing (The Press of Atlantic City, Retrieved November 8, 2007).
- ^ Judge says no to Trop request for restraining order against Local 54 (The Press of Atlantic City, retrieved November 17, 2007).
- ^ a b Commission rejects Tropicana Renewal License, New Jersey Casino Control Commission, retrieved December 12, 2007.
- ^ "Casino agency recommends renewing Tropicana license for only one year". Press of Atlantic City. 2007-12-04. http://pressofatlanticcity.com/top_three/story/7520688p-7420555c.html. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
- ^ "LICENSE REVOKED: Tropicana denied by N.J. panel". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2007-12-13. http://www.lvrj.com/business/12456031.html. Retrieved 2007-12-13.
- ^ "Icahn group buys AC Tropicana casino, 80 pct off". http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/06/12/financial/f084200D27.DTL&type=business.
- ^ "Icahn-led group approved for Tropicana ownership", The Press of Atlantic City, August 26, 2009.
- ^ They'd Pave Paradise, TropWorld is Threatening To Tear Down A Man's Castle (New York Daily News August 20, 1995).
[edit] References
- Gaming in Atlantic City article
- New Jersey Casino Control Commission approval of Aztar buyout
- Aztar Gaming Sale
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