Atlantic City is at a crossroads—again. With two new casinos holding their grand openings today, the city is making headlines again. The stakes, we are told, are high: whether these two new hotels succeed in attracting new visitors to the beleaguered seaside resort will make or break the city for the next generation.
But we’ve heard this song before. I know that I have. As I discuss in my book Boardwalk Playground: The Making, Unmaking, and Remaking of Atlantic City, the town has a long history of defying the odds, if not always beating them. Brought to life in 1854 by the Atlantic and Camden Railroad Company, Atlantic City was initially proposed as a high-end health resort—like Cape May, but easier to get to, thanks to the helpful ACRC’s train service.