REVEL To Sit Vacant Even Longer. Straub Still Has Too Much Control

AC Primetime w/ Mel Taylor. Atlantic City News, Info, Events.

Thousands of new Atlantic City jobs were put on hold this week. Is that the fault of Casino Control Commission Chairman Matt Levinson...or former REVEL owner Glenn Straub? Read on and decide for yourself. Straub feels that government regulations are the impediment, along with too much red tape. Straub (operating as a lessor under the name 500 Broadway) believes that since he’s leasing the casino to a third-party (Robert Landino), he shouldn’t personally need a casino license. Straub attorney, the highly respected LLoyd Levinson defended the REVEL owner and sourced a section of the New Jersey Casino Control Act. Listen to LLoyd Levinson defend Straub's position > According to LICENSING & APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY, and to the untrained eye....it kinda looks like Straub does NOT need a license since he will NOT operate the casino. But in Levinson's remarks below, he strongly states that Straub has far too much control over the entire property, and has not sufficiently removed himself from future operations within that building. Thus, he would need a license. (1) The commission, with the concurrence of the Attorney General which may not be unreasonably withheld, may determine that any person who does not have the ability to exercise any significant control over either the approved casino hotel or the operation of the casino contained therein shall not be eligible to hold or required to hold a casino license. The Straub / Landino lease agreement: Ten / Landino would only control 900 of 1,500 rooms in the resort. Straub would control the rest. This is not a lease of the entire casino hotel ( as Straub has pitched ) under the Casino Control Act,” said Levinson. Casino Control Commission Chairman Matt Levinson Remarks from JAN 31, 2017 We are again here today on the application of 500 Broadway for a declaratory ruling on whether it needs any kind of license whatsoever since it leases parts of the former Revel building to a third party. We are not here today to determine the suitability of 500 Broadway, Polo North or Mr. Straub to hold any such license. Casino Control Commission Chairman Matt Levinson continues..... In my opinion, we could dismiss this petition for several reasons. We are asked to waive licensing for a landlord that does not own the land in question. The company that does own the land, Polo North, isn’t a party to this petition. Mr. Straub could have transferred the property to 500 Broadway, but he has failed to do so. But rather than deny this petition on procedural grounds and delay the process, we will deal with the substance of the request by Mr. Straub and his companies. 500 Broadway plans to lease portions of the complex – including all of the gaming space – to an unaffiliated company, Revel North Beach LLC., which does not currently hold a casino license. Under Section 82 of the Casino Control Act, anyone who owns a casino hotel, is the lessor or lessee of a casino hotel or who has control over a casino hotel or the land it sits on is required to hold some sort of a casino license. Mr. Straub and his companies fit all of those categories. The question of the license status of a landlord is not a new one, in fact, it is something this commission considered for the first time more than 35 years ago. In some instances, the owner of the property was required to get a casino license while in other cases owners had to get a Casino Service Industry Enterprise license. In this case, Mr. Straub has not asked for a ruling on what kind of licensure, if any, is required. He had that option. Instead he asks for a ruling that no license is required. Given the extent of Mr. Straub’s control over the property and the state’s interest in upholding the Casino Control Act, I find it difficult to comprehend how Mr. Straub and his attorneys could suggest the state does not need to determine if he qualifies for any level of licensure.