Today is the deadline for Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. and Coastal Marina, LLC to complete the sale of the Trump Marina and Casino in Atlantic City. Coastal Marina and Jimmy Buffett have plans to turn it into a Margaritaville Casino.

New York gaming group Coastal Marina LLC is facing a deadline today to complete the purchase of Trump Marina, the weakest performer in the bankrupt casino empire once controlled by Donald Trump.

Coastal Marina wants to team up with Jimmy Buffett to transform Trump Marina into a Margaritaville-themed casino inspired by the singer’s “Margaritaville” hit song from the 1970s.

Trump Entertainment, parent company of Trump Marina, plans to continue negotiations with Coastal today, but would not disclose Wednesday whether the sale deadline might be extended.

“The deadline has not expired yet, so we’re continuing to talk,” Trump spokesman Tom Hickey said.

The Trump Marina deal has been shadowed for months by speculation that Coastal was having trouble lining up financing in the tight credit markets. Trump Entertainment lowered the price last fall from $316 million to $270 million and extended the sale deadline from October to May 28 to help Coastal.

Read the full article here.

Update – The deal will not close this week:

A New York gaming group that is in talks to buy Trump Marina Hotel Casino says the deal will not close this week as scheduled but that it still wants to acquire the property.

Coastal Marina LLC is facing a deadline today to complete the $270 million purchase from Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. Both sides say they continue to negotiate, but there was no word whether the sale deadline will be formally extended.

“I remain fully committed to our Margaritaville concept and very bullish on the long-term outlook for Atlantic City,” Coastal Chairman Richard T. Fields said in a statement.

Jimmy Buffett’s latest Margaritaville Cafe opened Monday at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, CT. The Day and the Norwich Bulletin have articles on the grand opening:

Mixed in with the executives and tribal members in suits, there were self-proclaimed “Parrotheads” donning their usual regalia: colorful leis and Hawaiian shirts in every color of the rainbow.

The pack of proclaimed Jimmy Buffett fans gathered Monday morning for the grand-opening of the entertainer’s only eatery in the Northeast.

”You can never have a bad time at Jimmy Buffett’s,” Mohegan Tribal Chairman Bruce “Two Dogs” Bozsum said. “So rock on.”

Read The Day article here, and the Norwich Bulletin article here (video and photos included).

Learn more about Jimmy’s Business Empire here.

(hat tip to Melissa for the photo!)

Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Cafe grand opening at the Mohegan Sun Casino (Uncasville, CT) is Monday (9/29). Miles Hampton will broadcast live from 12:30pm – 3:30pm ET. The ribbon cutting, first margarita toast, and
doors open to the public at 11 a.m.

Radio Margaritaville can be heard on SIRIUS Satellite Radio channel 31, DISH TV channel 6031, and streaming free to the world on radiomargaritaville.com.

Atlantic City’s Trump Marina Hotel Casino will stay open during its renovation and redesign to “Margaritaville”:

The developer who’s buying the Trump Marina Hotel Casino says it will remain open while it’s renovated into “Margaritaville.”

Richard Fields, chairman of Coastal Development LLC, signed a deal earlier this year to buy the casino from Trump Entertainment Resorts.

He told a gathering of business and labor leaders on Friday morning that he intends to keep the property open to keep casino and hotel workers on the job during the transition.

“I wanted to come here, in person, and tell you we intend to keep the marina, hotel and casino open during the entire rebranding and refurbishment process,” Fields said at a meeting of the Alliance For Action in Trenton. “In addition to creating hundreds of new construction jobs, we want to keep as many of the hotel staff working as well because when Atlantic City succeeds and New Jersey succeeds, I believe we all succeed.”

Coastal Marina will own all of the Atlantic City project, but will engage in a business venture there with Margaritaville Holdings LLC, owned by singer Jimmy Buffett, which includes a string of restaurants and retail shops.

Read the entire article here.

Jimmy Buffett’s latest Margaritaville cafe is scheduled to open next month at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut. Business Wire reports:

The saying, “The third time’s the charm,” couldn’t ring more true when it comes to Mohegan Sun’s third major expansion, Project Horizon. On August 29th, one of the largest gaming facilities in the world will get a little bigger as it opens the first portion of its $925 million expansion, the 64,000 square-foot Casino of the Wind, which will offer a 42-table poker room, more than 650 slot machines, 28 table games, Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville, and Chief’s Deli – a quick-service restaurant.

“We are very excited to reveal Casino of the Wind to the world,” said Mitchell Etess, President and CEO of Mohegan Sun. “The Rockwell Group, who have been our architects since the beginning in 1996, have outdone themselves. This may be their best work yet.”

The new facility, which broke ground in June 2007, makes its much-anticipated debut on Friday, August 29th at 10:00am immediately following a Tribal blessing and ribbon cutting ceremony. Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville is slated to open in September 29th.

Read the entire article here, and learn more about Buffett’s business empire here.