Stockton University has spent almost $8 million on the closed Showboat casino in Atlantic City since purchasing it in December, university records show.
Almost $700,000 of that has gone to pay the legal bills of several law firms involved in the purchase and later sale, plus the lawsuits and investigation generated by the deal.
If Stockton’s agreement to sell the site for $22 million to Philadelphia developer Bart Blatstein goes through as planned in November, the university will still be about $2 million short of its current $26 million investment in the property.
Interim President Harvey Kesselman said they are looking at other options to recoup the rest, including a complaint that has been filed against Caesars Entertainment Operating Co., the parent company of Showboat, which is now in bankruptcy. That lawsuit alone already has cost $150,000, paid to the law firm of Okin Hollander in Teaneck.
KK Ventures and Straub had a contract to buy Showboat from Stockton for $26 million, then sued when settlement did not take place in July and Stockton terminated the contract. Superior Court Judge Julio Mendez ruled that the contract was properly terminated, which freed Stockton to sell the site to Blatstein.