When Rocco Sebastiani discusses the closed Atlantic Tavern building on Pacific Avenue, the building owner says he sees a new horizon for Atlantic City. Sebastiani, who is the president of Colosseo Group (the company that acquired the property in 2019), told PlayNJ that restoration plans are in place for the South Tower and the North Tower with hotel rooms. His permits are still being reviewed by the city, he said.
Sebastiani told PlayNJ that he has decided to convert the South Tower into luxury condominiums and re-establish the look of the tower exterior with glass. He said it was too early to project the cost of the condominiums.
As far as plans for the North Tower go, Sebastiani stated that it will be a “330-room boutique hotel.”
But for now, he said the “focus is on the South Tower recladding” (replacing the exterior facade). The Atlantic Tavern has been closed since 2014.
“We just went to the market to purchase building materials; the supply chain is delayed and they’re giving us eight months out. Once we know when the glass can get produced, we will be in business,” Sebastiani said.
The project will take a year from start to finish, he said.
Atlantic City officials confirmed through an OPRA (Open Public Records Request) that Sebastiani has obtained a construction permit for the project, which was issued in September.
Here is a closer look at what Sebastiani shared with PlayNJ regarding future plans for the Atlantic Tavern site.
Ocean Club will never reopen being an Atlantic Town casino
Sebastiani has no programs of starting a 10th Ocean City gambling establishment . The house comes with a action restriction that will prevents this from providing slots in addition to table games. He or she said they have just over 5 years remaining on the limitation.
However , you will find a vacant gambling floor dating back to to the days as being the Golden Piece, Atlantic Town Hilton, Bally Grand in addition to Atlantic Tavern.
“ We are going to have as well as beverage, dining places and wedding party venue in addition to shopping. We now have the beach in addition to cabanas for the beach, ” Sebastiani stated.
“ This literally will alter the face with the Atlantic Town skyline, ” Sebastiani stated of the previous Atlantic Tavern building.
“ Some groupings are already arriving through to discuss the Northern Tower shop hotel aspect and they might be interested in buying and rebranding it, ” he additional.
More details regarding the South Tower system condominium programs
Sebastiani has no plans of opening a 10th Ocean City casino. The property has a deed restriction that prevents it from offering slots and table games. He said there are just over five years remaining on the restriction.
However, there is a vacant gaming floor dating back to the days as the Golden Nugget, Atlantic City Hilton, Bally’s Grand, and Atlantic Club.
“We will have food and beverage, restaurants, a wedding venue, and shopping. We have the beach and cabanas for the beach,” Sebastiani said.
“This literally will change the face of the Atlantic City skyline,” Sebastiani said of the former Atlantic Club building.
“Some groups are already coming through to discuss the North Tower boutique hotel aspect and they may be interested in buying and rebranding it,” he added.
Sebastiani tackles the $3. 2 , 000, 000 tax mortgage, building harm
In June, Atlantic Tavern paid $3.2 million to satisfy property taxes. Sebastiani said he has filed tax appeals for the years 2020, 2021, and 2022 and was hoping to have those resolved sooner but paid the tax bill and can expect to receive refunds if successful with the appeals.
He said the condos will be sold individually to individual owners and the hotel portion leased to a hotel group. Sebastiani blamed the pandemic for holding up progress on renovating the building.
“We would have been in the works right now,” he said.
Originally, Sebastiani said the plan was to reopen Atlantic Tavern as a hotel.
“But the building had a lot of damage and all the mechanical systems didn’t work. Then COVID hit and we didn’t know what we were doing after COVID. So, we regrouped with a plan to convert the building into something residential in a hospitality structure,” Sebastiani said.
“This has been the plan for a year and a half,” he said. “The architect and the city have been great to work with, and I’m excited.”
Sebastiani has owned or operated the Ocean Club due to the fact 2019
Sebastiani, who acquired the building in 2019, said his initial plans were to reopen it as a mega-resort. In October 2019, TJM Properties of Florida sold the closed casino-hotel to Colosseo Atlantic City Inc.
“We decided to reopen with a mega-resort with 800 rooms. We had the plan to go in and renovate the furniture and the fixtures,” he said. “But when we got in there, the systems didn’t work. It was really, really bad. It hadn’t been open for eight years.”
Before he took ownership, Sebastiani said the property was practically falling apart in 2016.
It was one of four AC casinos that closed in 2014. The Showboat has since reopened as a non-gaming hotel, and the former Revel is now Ocean Casino Resort. The former Trump Plaza, located at the center of the Atlantic City Boardwalk, has been demolished. However, there is no news yet regarding what’s next for the site.
Cleaning the Ocean Club
As for the Ocean Club, changes were made, and Sebastiani said he received a structural report one year ago to confirm that the property had been evaluated and complied with the city.
“There were areas that needed to be secured, and that’s why the bricks are missing off the side of the building that faces Stockton University Atlantic City campus. The building was made secure,” he said.
Sebastiani said the cleanup effort is complete in the Atlantic Club towers.
“We cleaned one tower where there were offices. There were 4,500 dumpsters filled with debris that was just left behind. They left everything behind,” Sebastiani said. “The desks were full of papers, the calculators still had tape left in them, and refrigerators were full of food. There were eight dumpsters filled with refrigerators.”
Sebastiani: ‘ We’ re dedicated to this project’
Sebastiani is optimistic about marketing the condos.
“Once we go to market and offer condos, we want people to understand that we have a lot of history and what we’re doing here is bringing people back to Atlantic City,” Sebastiani said. “We’re committed to this project, and I love the area.”
Sebastiani also constructed another Atlantic City building after September 11, 2001, on Delilah Road in Egg Harbor Township, which houses the Federal Air Marshals. His company that developed the facility was Regent Realty, which he still retains control of. He built hotels and commercial buildings with his father in 1979 and 1982 in Florida.
“Atlantic City has just turned the corner, and people are working hard. The only problem is the crime on the street, but the police and city are trying too,” he said.
Atlantic Squad key part to bigger Ocean City remodeling plans
Sebastiani isn’t the only one concerned about crime.
Senator Vincent Polistina stated that the stretch of Pacific Avenue where the Ocean Club is located, as well as the area between Albany Avenue and California Avenue, needs a makeover. Polistina told PlayNJ that he would like to see old properties along Pacific Avenue torn down, more code enforcement along the street, and improved lighting.
“From the Atlantic Club and the southern portion where Stockton has redeveloped, there has to be reinvestment and redevelopment. There is some great beachfront redevelopment and more residential activity that’s happening now. But what is there currently isn’t working,” Polistina said.
He also mentioned that the casino industry should be more involved in helping clean up Pacific Avenue.
“I am hopeful that we can get the casino industry to understand that it has to be a citywide approach and that they can’t just focus on what goes on within their own four walls,” he said.
Transforming typically the Chelsea area
Elizabeth Terenik, the president of the Chelsea Economic Development Corporation (EDC), is working on various strategies to tackle the negative impact of blighted properties in Chelsea. This includes developing a model that can be implemented throughout the city.
The organization is taking advantage of a unique opportunity presented by the neighborhood’s closed casino. Sebastiani is donating over 100 planters from inside the Ocean Club. The EDC and the Atlantic City Special Improvement District are placing the planters in various locations in the Chelsea neighborhood to help beautify the area.
Terenik also emphasizes the need for the neighborhood to undergo development.
“Blighted properties need to be addressed,” she said.
Meeting on a regular basis with Ocean City representatives
Sebastiani mentioned he regularly meets with city officials to ensure that the permitting is up to date.
“I go midweek and have two meetings a week with the city, addressing things like permitting issues. But we just obtained the permit a month and a half ago from the development office for the recladding of the south tower glass,” he said.
Sebastiani added that he hopes in the future the building will reopen with a casino once the deed restriction period is lifted.
“After all, it could take several years to build a new casino. We have the building here,” he said.
Stephanie Loder is a writer from Durham. This woman has worked as a reporter, editor and local editor for Gannett/USAToday in New Jersey and even in North Carolina.
