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ATLANTIC CITY: A touch of Las Vegas style pumps new life into casino town

BY JOHN DEINER | THE WASHINGTON POST

April 17, 2005

Dusk has fallen in Atlantic City, and love is in the air. No, wait. That's just a lot of smoke and mumbled profanity accompanying roulette spins gone afoul, and joyous shrieks when five Vannas finally queue up on a "Wheel of Fortune" nickel slot. There's the muffled din of piped-in Air Supply, the sound of cheap china clattering in buffets and, along the boardwalk, the soothing symphony created by waves slapping onto an empty beach.

But there's something new in the mix, and it ain't love. It's live music pounding out of nightclubs and leopard-spotted hipsters sucking down martinis in elegant lounges. Dancing - dancing - is breaking out on casino floors, and people are slinking to bed closer to dawn than sunset. Fine dining extends beyond two slices with the works.

Hope, dressed in Mizrahi and ready to partayyyy, has descended on the city, and it's as welcome as four aces in a poker hand. For proof, look no further than the Quarter, a $280-million adjunct to the Tropicana Casino and Resort that was unveiled in late November and whose most recent tenants (the upscale bar 32 Degrees and a dessert place called Brulee) just opened.

Modeled on Old Havana and emulating New Las Vegas, the complex comprises 505 guest rooms, clubs, restaurants, shopping, an Imax theater, a spa and enough fake palms to fill a fake desert. It's quite impressive, but mostly because of what it doesn't include: slot machines, blackjack tables or a baccarat parlor.

"We were constrained by our property ... so we had to build the Quarter across the street and connect it [to the casino]," says Tropicana executive Dennis Gomes. "But that enables locals to come in and not have to go into the casino, and it's become a major local attraction."

Not go into the casino? How refreshing.

Across town at the marina, the purple tower of cool known as Borgata took another approach. When it opened in July 2003, jump-starting the city's transformation from a gambling hellhole, the resort plunked youth magnets like its Mixx nightclub and curtain-garbed B Bar amid gaming tables. You want to dance, drink and mingle? Great, but you'll have to wend through a sea of slots to do it.

Two approaches, same result

Both approaches seem to be working just fine. Recently, the two hot spots were teeming with twentysomethings and the young at heart (if not body), out to have a good time. At 4:30 a.m.

Don't get all weepy-eyed yet for the old Atlantic City, that overcrowded, grimy mess where the drinks are free but you don't want to drink them. The roads leading into town are still pocked by $29-a-night hotels that look as if one good gust of wind would blow them over, and enough urban decay and empty lots remain to make spirits sag.

And while the younger set is discovering Atlantic City, by many accounts that's a weekend phenomenon. Still, since 1998, according to the Convention & Visitors Authority, the median age of visitors to the city has dropped from 55 to 52, and signs are that it's continuing to creep downward. More are coming by car as well, resulting in fewer Bus People, those oldsters who file off the shuttles and head home eight hours later.

All told, more than 33 million people stopped by last year, with three out of four hailing from New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia. Oddly enough, two-thirds of all visitors were female. "We're attracting all sorts these days," says the authority's Susan Ricciardi. "It's amazing how diverse the crowd has become."

For the moment, the Quarter is the big dog, but there's more to come.

The Walk, a blocks-long shopping center that looks more Mayberry than mall, has been a rousing success - and an effective welcome mat for those exiting the Atlantic City Expressway. Plans are under way to move its neighbor, a tacky faux lighthouse built in 1997, and expand the attraction.

The $175 million Pier at Caesars, which is replacing the mall-cum-eyesore built to resemble a cruise ship plowing onto the beach, will be connected by a glass walkway to the casino and will house a wedding chapel, nine restaurants and high-end retailers, such as Hugo Boss, Gucci and Louis Vuitton. Completion is set for next year.

Work continues at the Showboat - a Nawlins-themed resort and longtime favorite of older visitors - on its new House of Blues, the 10th in the chain. The project, costing $65 million, includes a restaurant, music hall, beach bar and casino and is scheduled to open around July 4. In May 2003, the hotel unveiled the 544-room Orleans Tower.

Borgata has broken ground on a multi-phase expansion, including rooms and condos, restaurants, stores, and gaming and convention space. Construction is expected to end in 2007.

Nikki Beach, a multitiered bar /restaurant/lounge that dubs itself "The Sexiest Place on Earth," opens at Resorts on May 2. In July 2004, the resort added the 399-room Rendezvous Tower, along with 14,000 square feet of gaming space and a spiffy new art-deco look.

In February, Harrah's started popping corks in the plush Xhibition, a circular lounge with 50- inch plasma TVs plopped in the center of the casino floor. That's unique in Atlantic City, but these days, nothing stays unique for long.

Hang around the Quarter long enough on a weekend, and you can almost set your watch by the level of activity. Mornings are quiet, as partiers sleep it off. Afternoons belong to the older set, lunchers, shoppers and gawkers.