ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Trump Plaza, the Boardwalk centerpiece of Donald Trump's onetime Atlantic City empire, was sold Thursday to a Downey company for $20 million in the cheapest of a series of bargain-basement deals for distressed gambling halls in the struggling New Jersey seaside resort.
It's a humbling finish for the flamboyant New York developer, who bet big on Atlantic City in the 1980s. The buyer, Meruelo Group, is headquartered in a two-story office building on Firestone Boulevard in Downey and was established as a pizza business catering to the Latino community.
Founded by Chief Executive Alex Meruelo in 1986, Meruelo Group now counts construction, engineering, real estate, food service and private equity among its businesses. It also owns Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno.
Xavier Gutierrez, chief investment officer for Meruelo Group, said the company planned to make a sizable investment in the property but could not yet predict what staffing levels would be.
The sale is expected to close May 31 in what would be the lowest price ever paid for a casino in Atlantic City.
Trump Plaza, which cost $210 million to build, opened in May 1984 as one of Donald Trump's pet projects. The real estate mogul has since limited his dealings in Atlantic City.
The sale leaves the company he once ran, Trump Entertainment Resorts, with just one casino, Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort in Atlantic City. The company sold the former Trump Marina to a Texas company that rebranded it as the Golden Nugget in 2011.
Trump Plaza is one of the first casinos visitors to Atlantic City see. It sits at the foot of the Atlantic City Expressway on the Boardwalk, directly next to Boardwalk Hall, and sometimes markets itself as being in "the center of it all."
It stands 39 stories over the Boardwalk and has 906 hotel rooms, ranking it among the smallest of the city's 12 casinos, the most successful of which have 2,000 or more rooms apiece.
Times staff writer Roger Vincent contributed to this report.
Meruelo Group buys Trump Plaza casino
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Meruelo Group buys Trump Plaza casino
