Preparatory Demolition Has Begun ahead of Planned Trump Plaza Implosion

Preparatory work for the demolition of the former Trump Plaza casino in Atlantic City has begun, but City Mayor Marty Small Sr. said earlier this week that a final timeline for the removal of what he had called earlier “the biggest eyesore in town” is still being worked out.

A demolition crew from Philadelphia-based demolition services firm Haines & Kibblehouse has brought equipment on the 10.5 acre site of the shuttered Trump Plaza and workers have begun gutting the property’s interior and taking down portions of the main building.

Both towers of Trump Plaza will eventually be imploded, but the site needs to be prepared for the implosion.

Trump Plaza opened doors back in 1984 to become one of Atlantic City’s most iconic hotel-casino resorts. As its name suggests, it was originally owned by US President Donald Trump. The property closed doors for good in September 2014. It was one of four Atlantic City casinos to shutter that year.

Trump Plaza was purchased by New York activist investor Carl Icahn in 2016. The once glitzy resort was supposed to be demolished in the fall of 2018, but that apparently did not happen.

During his unofficial State of the City address in January, Mayor Small said that he wanted to see Trump Plaza torn down and that the shuttered resort was an “embarrassment” and the “biggest eyesore in town.”

In March, Mayor Small’s administration sought a court order for the demolition of Trump Plaza and a month later a Superior Court Judge ordered to IEP AC Plaza LLC, a subsidiary of Mr. Icahn’s Icahn Enterprises, to present a demolition plan within 45 days.

Trump Plaza Will Possibly Be Imploded by Mid-2021

As mentioned above, Mayor Small said this week that the demolition timeline is still being worked out. Atlantic City’s top official said previously that he wanted the property imploded by February 2021. However, Mr. Icahn has submitted plans according to which the former casino resort would be torn down by June.

City leaders said that bringing the property down later than February would be unacceptable because the implosion could thus fall during the busy summer tourist vacations season and there would not be enough time for cleanup.

The demolition cost is, too, yet to be announced. Originally, the process was estimated to cost around $14 million. However, Mayor Small said earlier this year he expected the cost to go up as initial demolition plans had involved the implosion of the main tower only. Mr. Icahn’s plan now includes the resort’s east tower, as well.

The city hopes that once demolished the property would be sold and redeveloped into something new.

Atlantic City leaders looked to speed up the demolition process after pieces of Trump Plaza’s facade tore loose during heavy winds this past spring and crashed to the sidewalk. City building department officials and firefighters inspected the property and classified it as an imminent risk to public safety and a “threat to the surrounding area.”

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