Atlantic City casinos: Storied past, grim future

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http://www.thenewstribune.com/2014/09/18/3386973/atlantic-city-casinos-storied.html?sp=/99/261/

Atlantic City casinos: Storied past, grim future
By Kevin G. Hall
McClatchy Washington Bureau
September 18, 2014 Updated 11 hours ago

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Sakia Hall lost her $9-an-hour overnight housekeeping job at the Revel hotel and casino weeks ago, but she still cries about it. The single mother of a 12-year-old who also cares for a grown cousin is one of about 8,000 workers laid off here this year.

Forget about another casino job. Four casinos have closed this year in this New Jersey beach town and another may not be far behind. Hall, 33, was “working poor.” Now she’s just flat out desperate and poor in a city whose 12 percent jobless rate was about twice the national average even before the mass layoffs.

“It’s already hard if you are working for $9 an hour to pay $1,150 rent, and electric bills and stuff like that,” said Hall, who works two and sometimes three jobs to survive. “After six months, if you haven’t found a job, you’re out of luck, you’re homeless. A lot of people’s parents is losing their jobs.”

Hall is a face behind the implosion of this famed gambling city, and the plight of thousands like her offers a cautionary tale for states across the nation debating casino gaming or having recently authorized it.