Donald Trump, the Trump Marina Hotel Casino

Restaurant owner Landry’s has reached an agreement with Trump Entertainment Resorts to purchase the Trump Marina Hotel Casino in Atlantic City for $38 million, according to Bloomberg. Houston-based Landry’s, best known as the owner and operator of the Golden Nugget casinos in Las Vegas and Laughlin, Nev., will spend around $150 million on the first phase of a renovation project there, including new restaurants, a spa, pool and room improvements, said CEO Tilman Fertitta. [more]

Avenue Capital Group — a hedge fund that has nabbed headlines in the last year for its New York City-area commercial real estate dealings — has a new aspiring star in its family. Emma Lasry, the daughter of billionaire CEO Marc Lasry, has released a new single and music video entitled “Closet Bitch.” In it, the 18-year-old songstress sings into her hairbrush that while she seems nice, she’s actually a terrible person once you get to know her. She also dances in a skintight leather vest and pants. Her father seems pleased with the creative venture, telling the Wall Street Journal that he thinks “the song is really good.” Lasry’s hedge fund saw some of the largest commercial sales this past winter, when an affiliate unloaded more than $40 million of retail space at the Avonova.

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A bitter, 14-month legal battle over control of three Atlantic City casinos bearing the Trump brand ended in the Donald’s favor yesterday when a U.S. bankruptcy court rejected a takeover plan by billionaire investor Carl Icahn. Donald Trump’s plan, backed by a group of bondholders who are owed $1.2 billion and Marc Lasry of Avenue Capital Group, gives Trump a 10 percent stake in Trump Entertainment Resorts, reduces the company’s debt by $1.4 billion and allows the casinos to keep using the Trump name. During the court battle, Trump had said he would pull his name from the casinos if Icahn’s plan won. Avenue Capital will also contribute an additional $225 million to the casinos’ operations. Trump heralded the ruling, calling it a “great victory for Trump” and “a great loss for Carl Icahn.” He added: “I was surprised he attempted what he attempted but that’s OK. It’s fine.” [Bloomberg]

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Hotel developer Sam Chang’s $164.5 million sale of a three-pack of hotels at 337, 339 and 343 West 39th Street in Times Square to Hersha Hospitality Trust was the largest commercial transaction to close in February, data from PropertyShark.com shows. The second largest was the $110 million sale by an affiliate of developer Heritage Partners at 415 Greenwich Street of three commercial and 31 residential units at the 66-unit condominium conversion project in Tribeca, to an affiliate of California-based real estate investment firm KBS Capital Advisors. The next two largest sales were commercial units. In the first, an affiliate of Avenue Capital Group sold four retail condo units at the 115-unit condo conversion Avonova at 219 West 81st Street to an affiliate of Madison Capital for $26.5 million. In the other, an affiliate of the developer World-Wide Group sold three retail condos at 255 East 74th Street to an affiliate of the Related Companies for $25 million. [more]

A perceived snub has reportedly resulted in a 60,000-square-foot lease on the 11th floor of 399 Park Avenue by commercial brokerage Studley, rather than hedge fund Avenue Capital Group. Avenue was edging in on a deal with 399 Park’s owner, Boston Properties, when Boston caught wind of a rumor that Avenue was still shopping around. Meanwhile, Studley was looking to expand beyond its current 40,000-square-foot location at 300 Park Avenue, and Boston capitalized on the opportunity. Boston agent John Powers of CB Richard Ellis offered the firm “a very attractive proposal” on that same 11th-floor space, a source told the Post’s Steve Cuozzo. A lease was signed within days. [Post]  [more]