The sale of the Trump Marina to the New York firm Coastal Development for a re-branding into a Margaritaville Casino Resort has been called off. (This happened a few weeks ago but I have not had a chance to post it.)

Like can be expected, both sides have disputed what actually caused the deal to be called off – but one thing is for sure, Coastal Development probably wanted to pay less than the $270 million that they initially committed to – which is less than the $317 million that the deal was initially announced at in early 2008.

Its obvious that that property is not worth even $200 million – especially in this market. With the Tropicana sold to Carl Icahn and partners in exchange for $200 million in debt – its really no surprise to see the Trump Marina fall through at a $270 million price in actual cash/debt. The Tropicana is in much better condition and is a much larger casino that Trump Marina.

Its a big unknown as to what will happen to the Trump Marina – as well as the other two Trump properties in Atlantic City. A few weeks back it was discovered that Trump Entertainment Resorts had hired an investment bank to shop around the casinos for a sale and Donald Trump himself has also made it clear he would like to make a play for his casinos again.

Although I really question his motives – the casinos were ran into the ground under his watch twice (they filed for bankruptcy twice) and only after coming out of bankruptcy for the second time did he step down – which apparently didn't help the casinos at all since Trump Entertainment Resorts filed for bankruptcy a third time within the last year.

Coastal Development has stated that they are still interested in the Trump Marina property – as long as the price comes down, and if the Trump Marina property doesn't work out, they are interested in opening elsewhere in Atlantic City.

As for Donald Trump, if he were to purchase Trump Entertainment Resorts again, I think it would be the companies death kneel because he has not proved himself to be a good casino owner/operator. I think the only way to get the Trump Casinos back on their feet is to completely re-brand them – give them some type of theme that's more Vegas-Like.

While the penny slot playing seniors may be upset at the move to remove the Trump name, unfortunately they are not the ones the casinos need to attract.

andrew@alconic-inc.com
 
Andrew Calvo is a Commercial Real Estate Advisor in New Jersey. I live in Tinton Falls, NJ. This blog is about my passions - primarily hotels, commercial real estate, and development, etc.

Since I have been in High School I乫ve had numerous jobs, but the field which has always interested me is Real Estate, Hotel Development and Construction. I consider myself a zealot in that area - I try to absorb as much as I possibly can, take the experiences that I learn, or read about and use them in my life. 

www.passionsofazealot.com