Revel, the Atlantic City mega-casino, has filed for bankruptcy — the second time it’s done so in the past two years, Bloomberg News reported.
Revel cost $2.6 billion to develop and is New Jersey’s second-tallest building. It opened in April 2012, but 11 months later was forced to file for bankruptcy. The development posted an operating loss of $21.7 million in the first quarter of 2014. The Associated Press reported yesterday that Revel was telling employees it would shut down this summer if it didn’t find a buyer.Bloomberg News reported in November that Atlantic City had seen casino revenue shrink 40% since 2007 thanks to a confluence of negative factors, including regional competition, Hurricane Sandy, and the wider U.S. slowdown. Revel’s neighbor, the project formerly called the Atlantic City Hilton, filed for bankruptcy protection last winter.
New Jersey plunged at least $260 million to revive the project in 2011 after construction stalled. Morgan Stanley was an original partner, having sunk $1.25 billion into the project.
