He said making a noticeable reduction in crime could bring a rapid increase of 20% to 30% in visitation to Atlantic City. “We all agree we’re not pleased with where we are with the Tourism District,” said Resorts President Mark Giannantonio, speaking of an area encompassing the city’s downtown and casino areas. It follows harsh comments two weeks ago from Jim Allen, CEO of Hard Rock International, that Atlantic City “is going in the wrong direction” and is in worse shape than when his company bought the casino three years ago. The talk was remarkable in that it was the first sustained, nearly unanimous declaration by Atlantic City’s casino leadership of dissatisfaction with current conditions in the city, something they previously addressed only in passing, or in private. Go out and buy the biggest bulldozer the county has to offer, and you could probably make a lot of positive changes.” There’s a lot of work that needs to be done. “Our buildings can’t be surrounded by drug addicts and prostitutes,” said Hard Rock President Joe Lupo. WHYY thanks our sponsors - become a WHYY sponsor
