Glenn Straub Claims Giant Seagulls Continue to Fly into Revel Casino’s Windows
The strange story of Revel Casino just got stranger. Windows in the casino’s vacant gambling hall have been smashed on several occasions and the building’s owner is blaming seagulls for the damage. It appears even the local birds are against Revel Casino, which some might describe as a cursed venue.
Glenn Straub, the new owner of Revel, says the seagulls routinely crash into the windows of the Revel Casino. Apparently, these are no ordinary gulls, either, but “the biggest seagulls I’ve ever seen”, said Straub.
In a scene reminiscent of an Alfred Hitchcock movie, the birds have continued to run into the building all summer. They’ve done $36,000 worth of damage.
“Giant Seagulls” Blamed for Damage
The Floridian real estate developer said, “You folks have got some giant seagulls here. Some of them look like they’re 60 pounds. We find feathers and everything else underneath the windows, not to mention crabs that they drop from way up to smash them open and then eat [them].”
Mr. Straub appears to be sanguine, given the long struggle which has taken place to re-open the Revel Casino. The casino, which cost $2.4 billion to build, closed on September 2, 2014. In the year since the closing, a months-long bankruptcy auction took place.
ACR Energy Partners’s Troubles
Several potential buyers were driven off by the high energy costs charged by ACR Energy Partners, which had a one-sided electricity contract with the old owners of the Revel Casino. When Glenn Straub became the third potential owner to balk at paying the $3 million a month energy costs, a long court battle began between Straub’s Polo North and ACR Energy Partners.
The stand-off has hurt both sides, but appears to be hurting ACR the most. This week, a New Jersey judge referenced a June 20 filing by Julie Marrone of Bank of New York Mellon which said that the energy coop is running out of money and has defaulted on its loans.
The filing said that ACR Energy Partners is in danger of failing, because the coop cannot recoup the true cost of providing electricity to the casino-resort because of a court-sanctioned interim price agreement imposed by the judge in the case.
Marrone wrote in her summary, “In short. ACR is in extreme financial distress.”
The dispute centers around Straub’s unwillingness to help pay off the debts on ACR’s costly power plant. The state has mandated ACR must provide energy to the Revel Casino during the dispute, in order to keep the fire safety systems powered.
Timothy Lowry Replies
ACR lawyer Timothy Lowry also says that his clients are distressed about the length of time it has taken to repair the windows. Like any building, tremendous amounts of cool air would presumably be escaping the casino due to the broken windows.
In a public statement, Lowry suggested alternative reasons for the windows to be breaking. He also issued a prophecy, if not a warning.
Lowry Suggests Alternative Theory
Timothy Lowry wrote, “Our concern obviously is the lack of air conditioning and the unequal pressure resulting from the unconditioned space. The disparity in atmospheric pressure can actually cause windows to pop out and rain down, and the last thing we need is another Plywood Palace.”
The Plywood Palace case Lowry is referring to is involved Boston’s John Hancock Building, an establishment which had notable issues in Massachusetts in the 1970s. During a period with high winds, 133 windows were shattered due to the different in power.
More Legal Fallout
It would appear that the series of legal battles between Glenn Straub and ACR Energy may continue. In his short time involved in Atlantic City’s business community, Straub has shown he is a skilled legal infighter. He has used litigation to push his vision for Revel Casino, while he has shown patience in outlasting several competitors in the bidding for the $2.4 billion resort.
Now, it appears Glenn Straub’s combination of patience and litigiousness may be forcing one of his constant opponents to fail. If the ACR Energy Partners business fails, then Polo North and Revel Casino would be free to sign a deal with some other energy supplier. Such a deal might allow the new Revel Casino to fix a feasible budget and fit into the local casino economy with more manageable costs than its predecessor. Whether you believe Revel Casino should be forced to pay on the original contract or not, that prospect is likely to be good for the economy of Atlantic City. Between 1,000 to 2,000 workers are likely to be employed by the new Revel Casino.
Now, if Glenn Straub can only figure out a way to defeat the giant seagulls.
