Quote:
Originally Posted by newboldphilly
The last trolleys ran on the island in the mid 50's. The routes were replaced with buses by the trolley companies because they were cheaper. The companies couldn't justify the expense of maintenance of way in the face of declining ridership.
I know the buses are fine but light rail is about economic development as much as it is about moving more people than buses.
I think it's safe to say at this point that AC is about more than casinos now and that people from all over NJ (and NYC and Philly) are heading there just as much for the restaurants, shopping, nightclubs, and in the summer, the beach as they are for the casinos.
Getting that grocery store, getting those basic "conveniences" of the suburbs requires a critical mass of residents (residents with money) and it's quite chicken and egg. AC is never going to get those things if the RE market is only targeting gamblers. I have friends and relatives on the mainland - all in their mid-20's to mid-30's and they all say they would live in the city if there was anything going on off the Boardwalk (and they don't mean the Borgata). They're not alone. The book-end demographics are crying out for AC to be something more than casinos and, so far, it's only stumbling in that direction.
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Honestly, I don't think the goal is ever make Atlantic City more than a resort town that is primarily casino driven. I'm in my mid-30s myself and have worked at a few of the casino's marketing departments and now deal with casino executives on a daily basis and living in AC isn't a priority for them or anyone really.
REMEMBER The goal for the AC Casinos is to sway
gamblers away from Philly and NY Slots with other stuff to do, but the focus is still and will always be gaming. The idea is... we want you to gamble here because we have more to do when
you're not gambling. The people are coming for more than the gambling but they are still coming for the gambling (90% of the rooms on Summer weekends are comps or otherwords gamblers).
Many of those 40+ who grew up on the island couldn't wait to get off the island which is why towns like EHT is such a growing community, much better schools, better city government etc. Now offshore it's the place to go for young familes (25-40) and that's not going to change. It's a 10 minute drive to their offices in AC but they can have a front and backyard. Development-wise, I don't think most people realize how small AC is since they never get off the boardwalk, but much of it near the back bay and inlet has already been redeveloped over the like 15 years. They are already demolishing residental units for commercial development at other areas of the town. No one will want to live in the shadows of the Borgata or MGM. Traffic and noise is already crazy on friday and Sunday nights.
The condo development in town is all about 2nd homes and or vacation homes. Now as a marketing consultant I'm working with two real estate companies and this is all about weekend and summer residents. If you are not a gambler and love the Jersey Shore or have kids; AC just isn't the place and will never try to be. They are already reducing the number of kids in schools and consoladate which they have been doing.
As a fan of skyscrapers the best thing for AC is for the continued and rapid commercial growth. I love all these projects