Locals Getting Frustrated, Wondering What's Next At Revel?
By David Madden
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (CBS) - It's been more than four months since South Florida developer Glenn Straub bought the shuttered Revel Hotel Casino in Atlantic City for a bargain basement price of $82-million.
Some locals are now beginning to wonder what, if anything, Straub will actually do with the property?
So what has he been doing lately?
"We've only been here for four months fighting everything in two different court systems -- federal court systems and state court systems -- costing millions of dollars to do that," Straub says. "But we'll get everybody on the same track. That's what we do."
Straub has, in fact, talked about a lot of ideas, not just for the Revel, but the north end of the Boardwalk. As for a new casino, "we're not sure that it's worth it to start up a casino just to pay taxes," he says. "You have to make a profit and we're not in that business."
The frustration with Straub is starting to surface in public. Still, Straub promises to have an indoor/outdoor water park up and running by next Memorial Day. And he's looking at various options to make the place produce revenue year round, although hat takes time.
Joe Weinert, an analyst with the Spectrum Gaming Group, says he just wants something to happen:
"The Revel's a big, beautiful building with many wonderful features and they want to see it put to good use where it employs people and contributes to the economy."
Their message to Straub is summed up in five words, according to Weinert: "put up or shut up."