The owner of Atlantic City’s Showboat Hotel has revealed he plans to build a $100 million, year-round, indoor waterpark on the grounds of the hotel. The new development is expected to break new ground in August, according to Bart Blatstein, the Philadelphia developer who runs the Showboat hotel.
The Showboat hotel is one of a few in Atlantic City to not offer gambling facilities and is the largest hotel on the city’s famous boardwalk. This week, Bart Blatstein applied for a state tax credit in order to help finance the new water park, set to be built next to the hotel.
The resort is as of yet unnamed and is aiming to appeal to families on holiday who may find little to do in a city focuses heavily on gambling. “Atlantic City does not have a family market,” Blatstein said. “This will open up a whole new market that doesn’t exist.” As it stands, Atlantic City has a large Ferris wheel and an aquarium that already draw some families, although the city remains heavily geared towards adult gamblers.
Bart Blatstein is now seeking approval from the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, for designation as an entertainment retail district. This would then entitle the project to an annual rebate of up to $2.5 million in sales tax generated by it, for the next 20 years. There would also be tax breaks on construction materials used for the project.
The new water park would be built on an existing car park situated between the Showboat Hotel and the Ocean Casino Resort at the north end of the boardwalk. This is an area that the casino and city leaders have been looking to revitalise and invest in.
The proposal is the latest in a string on water park projects planned for Atlantic City. Shelved plans include a new hotel with indoor water park facilities on the site of the former Atlantic Club casino, and a sailboat shaped hotel and water park project in the Marina District.
