NOW THIS WILL BE THE TOTAL INSULT THE THE AVIATION COMMUNITY Headline: AC official: Casino could go at Bader Field site The head of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority said Thursday he foresees a casino being built at the former Bader Field airport site. Thomas Carver told a state Senate panel, "we surely envision additional casino operations at this site.'' He also said plans may soon be announced for another new casino in the marina district, near the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa and Harrah's Atlantic City. The authority is part of a committee appointed by Mayor Robert Levy to study potential uses for the largest tract of undeveloped land left in Atlantic City. Several casino operators have already expressed interest in the site, which sits just off the Black Horse Pike at the south end of the city. Experts have estimated the land could fetch $1 billion on the open market. Carver told the Senate tourism and gaming committee that while nothing has been decided yet, casinos are an appealing use for what he termed "the most valuable piece of real estate on the East Coast.'' "It's 150 acres in the middle of what we're talking about,'' he said. "We don't want to prejudge outcomes. We're doing a variety of studies on behalf of the city of Atlantic City in order to come up with a development plan which will virtually guarantee the longest, best and continuing return of investment to the city.'' There are currently 11 casinos in Atlantic City, with at least three new ones having been publicly announced. One, by the Morgan Stanley investment firm to be operated by Revel Entertainment, is planned for land near the Showboat Casino-Hotel. The former Sands Casino Hotel is to be razed this fall to make way for another new casino to be built by Pinnacle Entertainment. However, a new casino at the Bader Field site could scuttle Pinnacle's plans to build on the Sands site. Daniel Lee, Pinnacle's president, told reporters last month that a new casino on the airport site could be a deal-breaker for his company's Atlantic City plans. The new casino at Bader Field would have the advantage of operating on an isolated, pristine site, while the Pinnacle and other Boardwalk casinos have to deal with the challenges of an urban environment right outside their doors. Kim Townsend, executive vice president of Pinnacle Atlantic City, said today that "we are all savvy enough to never say never. But the group that operates here on the Boardwalk is still banking on the fact that when gambling was approved, they said this is where they were going to do it. "We were to be the redevelopment of a part of the city that was falling apart,'' she said. ""It's not completed. It's not done yet.'' Townsend said a Bader Field casino operator would benefit financially by having an already assembled 150-acre site presented to them, when others such as Pinnacle had to ""scrape and sweat and work really hard to assemble 20 acres in a dead zone.'' Also in the planning stages is a third smaller "boutique'' casino to be built by Curtis Bashaw, the former Casino Reinvestment chairman, and Wally Barr, the former chief executive officer of Caesar's Entertainment, on land near the Atlantic City Hilton Casino Resort. Joining them may be another new casino on land in the city's marina District, Carver told the committee. He spoke of "the possibility of a major new casino next to the Borgata and Harrah's. Hopefully something in the next few weeks will come forth on that.'' http://us.lrd.yahoo.com/_ylc=X3oDMTI0MTdqNjU2BFJfYWlkAzAEUl9kbW4DYXBwLmNvbQRSX2ZpZAMzZGVkZTU2ZjQxYzhjMTMzYjc5YzU2ZGJjMzIyNDgxZQRSX2x0cAMx/SIG=12k970pep/**http%3A//www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article%3FAID=/20070607/NEWS/70607060/1001/rss <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you wish to unsubscribe from the AIRLINE List, please send an E-mail to: "listserv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx". Within the body of the text, only write the following:"SIGNOFF AIRLINE".