Nothing left to Revel in as another casino shuts its doors

ATLANTIC CITY - As the final guests checked out of the Revel Casino Hotel on Monday morning, some said they were convinced that the $2.4 billion bankrupt property would reopen under a new owner.

"I don't think it's going to stay closed," said Paul Hergen, 42, who, with his wife and 3-year-old daughter, was enjoying Revel's two-acre landscaped patio and its wide views of the Atlantic Ocean.

"I think it's the most amazing property there's ever been in Atlantic City," said Hergen, of Greenwich, Conn., who said he has been coming to Atlantic City since he was 18.

Hergen and other hotel guests were scheduled to check out by 11 a.m. Monday. The casino was supposed to continue operating until 6 a.m. Tuesday, but early Sunday evening only a smattering of gamblers remained on the floor.

Off the casino floor, loyal gamblers were collecting a final gift from Revel: an eight-piece melamine bowl set, including measuring cups. One couple walked away with a menu from Amada restaurant signed by the chefs.

The closure of Revel, which opened in April 2012 and employed 2,814 in July, follows the end of casino operations on Sunday at Showboat after 27 years. Trump Plaza is scheduled to close Sept. 16, bringing total job losses to about 5,700 for the three casinos. All are victims of the proliferation of casinos in Pennsylvania and other neighboring states since 2006.

But in its short time of operation, Revel won some diehard fans.

Three friends from New York, for example, regulars who stayed overnight at Revel at least once a month, were having fun taking pictures of each other on one of the long escalators that lead up to the hotel lobby on the 11th floor.

Jayne Lord, of the Bronx, and Lucille Alexander, of West Chester County, N.Y., wore T-shirts that said "RIP My Beloved Revel." On the back there was a campy comic-book figure of a woman crying and saying, "My Revel is gone."

Friend Robert Lorenzo said Revel grew on him. "The more I came here, the more I loved it," said Lorenzo, also of the Bronx.

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Nothing left to Revel in as another casino shuts its doors