Trump Marina Casino Sale Delayed by Financial Difficulties
The sale of the Trump Marina Casino, already tied up in paperwork and restrictions caused by Trump Entertainment's bankruptcy, has been further stalled by credit problems affecting the purchaser, say Trump officials. The sale was supposed to close yesterday, but Coastal Marina, the company contracted for almost a year to buy the Trump casino, said it needed more time to find suitable financing."We're still working on finalizing the details, but the sale is not going to close (this week)," said Trump Entertainment CEO Mark Juliano. "It will close when the credit markets improve a bit."
Coastal has planned to convert the Trump gambling venue, located in Atlantic City, into a Margaritaville casino, entering into a licensing agreement with Jimmy Buffet and establishing a theme for the resort.
But volatile economic conditions have disrupted the sales agreement several times. Decreasing value caused the price to be negotiated down from an original $316 million to $270 million.
Further, Trump was forced into bankruptcy in February when bond holders refused to accept an offer from founder Donald Trump to buy back debt at pennies on the dollar.
Juliano insisted that Coastal still has the wherewithal to complete the deal, and that the problem is not acquiring financing. Instead, he said, credit is available, but "it was too expensive."
He did note that, while the extension with Coastal is amicable, Trump Entertainment does have the right going forward to terminate the sale. Trump hired representatives two months ago to find bids for all its properties, and Juliano said everything could be had for the right price.
