Caesars selects regional president for Atlantic City properties

Caesars Entertainment Corp. has named a regional president for its three casino hotels in Atlantic City. Together, the properties represent 30% of the resort city’s market.

The gaming company’s licensees — Bally’s Atlantic City, Caesars Atlantic City, Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City and Caesars Interactive (online) — have submitted a joint petition for Ronald Baumann to assume the duties of regional president, the Press of Atlantic City reports.

The New Jersey Casino Control Commission is tentatively scheduled to consider approving a temporary casino key employee license for Baumann at Wednesday’s public meeting.

Baumann is an industry veteran and previously held senior leadership positions at multiple Atlantic City properties operated by Caesars. He is currently general manager and senior vice president of Indiana Grand Racing & Casino in Shelbyville, Indiana.

Baumann would fill the role left vacant after former regional president Kevin Ortzman and the gaming company parted ways in August. Ortzman had been named in a wrongful termination suit filed in May by a former employee. Caesars filed a response to the civil lawsuit in July and denied the allegations against Ortzman and the company.

Ortzman had been president of the Casino Association of New Jersey and a member of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority executive board.

The governor’s office has not named a replacement for Ortzman’s seat on the CRDA. Steve Callender, senior vice president of operations for the East Region of Tropicana Atlantic City’s parent company, Eldorado Resorts Inc., was recently appointed president of the CANJ.

Eldorado and Caesars are working on a $18.3 billion merger that would create the largest gaming operation in the United States with nearly 60 casino properties in 16 states, including four of the nine casinos in Atlantic City. The deal is still pending shareholder approval as well as permission from federal and state regulators.