Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino

Trump Plaza is a hotel and casino located on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Designed by architect Martin Stern, Jr., it was opened in 1984 and is one of two casinos owned by Trump Entertainment Resorts. The casino was host to WrestleMania IV and V in 1988 and 1989 along with adjacent Boardwalk Hall.

History

Trump Plaza opened as a joint venture between Donald Trump and Harrah’s Atlantic City. Trump built the complex and it was managed by Harrahs and contained 614 rooms, seven restaurants, a health club, a 750-seat showroom and a 60,000 sq.ft. casino all on a narrow 2.6 acre plot of land next to Caesars Atlantic City. Within six months, the Harrahs name was removed from the casino and it became known only as Trump Plaza. Part of the reason for this is that Harrah's was commonly associated and attracted low-rolling gamblers, but Trump had built 85 high-roller suites, which were rarely used. ^[2] Revenue for the seven months it was open in 1984 the casino was placed seventh out of the ten casinos operating in the city at the time, which lead to Trump taking over the entire casino from Harrah's. In 1989, the East Tower of the complex was opened, expanding the resort to a total of 906 rooms. The East Tower had been built as apartments in 1968, but were abandoned shortly after gambling was approved in 1976. Trump purchased the tower and covered the brick facade in white stucco to match the rest of the casino. On May 24, 2011, Trump Entertainment Resorts announced that a decision would be made within two months to either sell the casino or to renovate and expand it. A joint venture partner could be brought in if the decision is made to renovate the property. ^[3]

Dining

Fine Dining

• Max's Steakhouse
• Roberto's Ristorante

Casual Dining

• 24 Central Cafe
• China Cafe
• Evo
• Rainforest Cafe
• Sarah's Cookies

Quick Service

• Haagen-Dazs
• Nathan's Famous
• Sbarro
• Starbucks Coffee
• Auntie Anne's

Bars & Nightclubs

Trump Plaza contains two nightclubs, Liquid Bar and Jezebel's, and a seasonal bar on the beach named The Beach Bar at Trump Plaza.

2010 Loss of Air Conditioning

On July 16, 2010 executives at Trump Plaza announced that effective immediately and until at least July 18 the hotel and casino would be temporarily closed due to a lack of air conditioning and cold water. On the previous day a pipeline which runs from a nearby Conectiv Energy thermal plant to the Trump Plaza as well as neighboring Caesars (owned by Harrah's) and the state owned Boardwalk Hall Convention Center broke causing cooled air and water to be cut off, both Caesars and Boardwalk Hall said they would remain open but Trump Plaza executives made the decision to close moving hotel guests to sister properties Trump Taj Mahal (also on the Boardwalk) or the Trump Marina (in the Marina District).^[4][5] This is the first time since the 2006 New Jersey State Government shutdown that an Atlantic City casino was forced to close.

Controversy

The complex was at the center of a major eminent domain court case in the mid-1990s, when Trump Enterprises sought to obtain the property of Vera Coking, a retired homeowner whose house was adjacent to Trump Plaza. (picture) In Coking vs. C.R.D.A., Donald Trump, and Trump Plaza, Mrs. Coking was victorious,^[6] and plans to build a limousine parking lot on her property were thwarted. After her death in 2009, Trump Plaza purchased the property and built the parking lot.

TrumpOne Card

Trump Plaza and Trump Taj Mahal have a comp card similar to most casinos. The club has four levels:

• TrumpOne: Free to all members age 21 and older.
• Executive: 4,000 tier points in a calendar year required.
• Chairman: 10,000 tier points in a calendar year required.
• Signature: 80,000 tier points in a calendar year required.

See also

• Trump Taj Mahal

References

External links

• Official Site
• Emporis Page