Hard Rock International To Purchase Closed Trump Taj Mahal

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ — Hard Rock International is leading a group of investors that plan to buy the shuttered Trump Taj Mahal, according to published reports.

The group plans to purchase and renovate the site for $300 million, The Press of Atlantic City reports. It will be renamed Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Atlantic City, and the project is expected to create 3,000 temporary and permanent jobs.

The new hotel and casino is expected to open in the summer of 2018.

“The plan announced by Hard Rock and its partners to purchase and re-open Atlantic City’s former Taj Mahal as the new Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Atlantic City is great news for New Jersey,” Gov. Chris Christie said in a statement on Wednesday. “There is no doubt that this purchase was encouraged by our efforts to stabilize the finances of the city government. Businesses now know that the years of irresponsible spending and taxing by the city government are over and they are ready to once again invest in Atlantic City. Not only will they create 3,000 jobs for Atlantic City, but they will engage in a needed total remodeling of the existing hotel and casino. We believe this is just one of many private sector investments we can encourage to be made as we continue to revitalize Atlantic City.”

“We are excited to be part of this revitalization of Atlantic City, creating thousands of jobs to help local employment,” Hard Rock President and CEO Jim Allen, a 1978 graduate of Mainland Regional High School, told The Press.

The Taj Mahal closed in October after losing multiple million dollars over the course of several months and following a strike involving its workers, bartenders and bellmen.

President Donald Trump’s company, Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts, bought the Taj Mahal in 1988 while it was under construction, largely with junk bonds that carried an incredibly high interest rate. The casino opened in 1990 to much fanfare — at the time it was the tallest building in New Jersey, and Trump claimed it was the largest casino in the world.

However, after Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts were forced to file three bankruptcies, Trump was forced to step away from operating the businesses, and his company was renamed Trump Entertainment Resorts.
Carl Icahn, of Icahn Enterprises, purchased the company in February of last year.

When it closed, it was among five casinos to close in Atlantic City. This took its toll on the job market and left the city searching for ways to generate revenue.

“This deal is welcome news, not just for the two thousand union workers who can look forward to greater job security and a hopefully healthier working relationship with management, but also for the greater Atlantic City region as a whole,” State Sen. President Stephen Sweeney told CBS 3. “This sale proves that the steps we have taken to stabilize Atlantic City’s economy are already paying dividends, in terms of greater confidence and marketability on the part of local businesses."

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