Will The Trump Taj Mahal Shut For Good?

On Monday, October 17th, one of Atlantic City’s most iconic casino hotels, the Trump Taj Mahal, shutdown after losing more than $350 million for its owner Carl Icahn.
The US business magnate bought the downtrodden casino in 2014 stating that he would spend $100 million rescuing the venue, but with his offer of help coming with two main caveats; that a casino expansion to North Jersey should not go ahead, and that employees at the Trump Taj Mahal should renegotiate their labor deal, particularly with reference to their healthcare and pension fund benefits.
Unfortunately, no compromise was forthcoming and after a month of the casino’s union workers striking, negotiations collapsed, Icahn pulled the plug on the casino, and now 3,000 Atlantic City employees find themselves out of a job.
Despite being closed, the Trump Taj Mahal still remains the property of Icahn, who also continues to maintain the casino’s gambling license. Moreover, there is apparently no pressing deadline for him to surrender his gambling license unless served with a formal request by the NJ Division of Gaming Enforcement(DGE).
Therefore, it is not impossible that a few months down the road Icahn may decide to reopen the casino and hotel with a new, amenable workforce. This could also provide the businessman with ample time to carry out the renovations and repairs the property so desperately requires. While a theoretical possibility, if that is his intention then Icahn still faces formidable opposition in the guise of NJ Senate President Steve Sweeney, who considers the businessman’s decision to reject the original labor agreement of his workers as an unanticipated loophole in the law. As Sweeney recently stated:
“But casino owners shouldn’t be able to misuse bankruptcy laws and gaming regulations in order to warehouse a license or take money out of the pockets of casino workers and strip them of benefits simply because they refuse to come to a labor agreement with their employees.”