"We have said all along our first priority is to stabilize operations here in Atlantic City, and one of the ways to do that is to finally sell one asset," Juliano said Thursday. "We've got quite a lot of people that have expressed interest. I think it's generated a lot more interest now that we are out of bankruptcy."
In 2008, Trump Marina was nearly sold for $316 million to Coastal Development L.L.C., of New York, with plans to transform it into a Margaritaville-theme casino in partnership with singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. The price was cut to $270 million in hopes of salvaging the deal, but it collapsed in 2009.
The on-again, off-again courtship between Coastal and Trump Entertainment came up in the bankruptcy hearings earlier this year. Robert Pickus, Trump Entertainment's general counsel, said costly litigation in Florida involving the casino company and Richard T. Fields, chairman of Coastal Marina, an affiliate of Coastal Development, would be dismissed with the sale of Trump Marina to Coastal.
But Thursday, Fields said Coastal was no longer interested, and he rebuked Juliano and Trump Entertainment for trying to use Coastal to solicit higher offers.
"Coastal made a written offer to purchase the Marina on Aug. 23, 2010, and was prepared to place half of the purchase price in escrow," Fields said. "The company never responded. . . . Last week, we formally withdrew our offer."
"We are now officially out of the picture," Fields added, "and will not be used in the press as a stalking horse in a deceptive process."
Still, Juliano said he would not rule Coastal out, noting that this was the fourth time it had come forward.
