Atlantic City and New Jersey's casinos saw October revenue surge

Four of the city's 12 casinos have shut down so far this year - The Atlantic Club, the Showboat, Revel and Trump Plaza. And the owners of the Trump Taj Mahal said Thursday they will close it on December 12 unless the casino workers' union stops trying to overturn a court order that ended their health insurance and pensions. Internet gambling brought in nearly US$ 9.5 million in October, down from US$ 10.2 million in September.

The city is reeling from the closures. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said Thursday that the first order of business is to "stop the bleeding." So city and state officials are trying to reposition Atlantic City by literally building it up.

For a city with lots of closed shops and casinos, there's also a fair amount of new construction here. Across from the shuttered Trump Plaza, Mayor Don Guardian proudly shows off what will be a Bass Pro outdoor goods store occupying a whole city block.

The state's Casino Reinvestment Development Authority chipped in land and $12 million for the project. It will employ 290 people, Guardian says, "so that's real good for the city as well."

In trying to recast itself, Atlantic City must partially wean itself from its biggest industry: gaming. It lifted the city out of disrepair four decades ago, but over the years, Guardian says, the city became too dependent on it.

"The city was happy, because it provided decent jobs with benefits and it paid the taxes, but we lost everything else," Guardian says. "You lose your whole entrepreneurial spirit."

Guardian and redevelopers want to do what Las Vegas did two decades ago, on a smaller scale: branch out into more entertainment and conference and event hosting.