Atlantic City’s Revel reaches new deal with Straub for $82 million
NEW YORK— The shuttered Revel in Atlantic City again has a buyer — and again it’s Florida developer Glenn Straub, who was lured back by a discounted price of $82 million.
The deal follows two failed sale agreements for the casino hotel, which cost $2.4 billion to build and is struggling to emerge from the second bankruptcy since it opened in 2012.
Straub’s announcement brings a rare bit of good news for the struggling seaside resort. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie recently appointed an emergency manager to reinvigorate the city’s finances and appointed Kevyn Orr, who put Detroit into bankruptcy, as special counsel.
“Clearly, with two bankruptcy filings in less than two years, the Revel Hotel & Casino is in need of innovative management,” Straub said in a statement.
Straub’s previous purchase agreement was dogged by disputes with restaurants and nightclubs that operated in the hotel, which was distinguished by its eye-catching design. The developer said on Tuesday he would invest $100 million to expand the exterior of the building and making the lobby more accessible.
Straub said his three-year plan to integrate “quality of life and sports will help change the image of Atlantic City from a predominately gaming destination back to a world-renowned resort town.”
Straub’s Polo North Country Club Inc. has deposited the full purchase price with Revel, according to a statement from the casino.
A U.S. bankruptcy judge last month approved the sale of the property to Straub for $95.4 million, although he argued that the price should be cut to $87 million because the auction process was tainted by conflicts and a lack of transparency.
An affiliate of Brookfield Asset Management walked away from a $110 million sale last year due to disagreements with the hotel’s only utility, ACR Energy Partners.
