The Atlantic City Alliance—a marketing group funded by casinos to promote the resort—barely lasted four years before a move was underway to dissolve it and return its million budget to city casinos.
And apparently reading the writing on the wall, the CEO of the Alliance has stepped down.
Liza Cartmell, president and CEO of the Alliance said in a letter addressed to “My AC friends” that she is retiring. Jeff Guaracino, the alliance’s chief strategy and communications officer, will take over as the new CEO.
“As you all so painfully know, Atlantic City is in a time of transition and all its major institutions are proactively adapting to a new reality,” Cartmell wrote. “The Atlantic City Alliance will continue to promote the destination with a reduced staff and re-aligned resources and priorities—pending definitive legislative/executive action to resolve its status and possible funding (or not).”
When it was formed, the alliance was only slated to operate until 2016.
A proposed economic-recovery plan for Atlantic City scheduled to be considered this month in the state Legislature would dissolve the alliance and use the ACA’s funding for the next two years to help offset city taxes.
The alliance created the “Do AC” marketing campaign and also sponsored attractions such as beach concerts, sand-sculpting contests, art displays, Fourth of July fireworks, film festivals and 3-D light shows.
Though the alliance’s budget is scheduled to be used as part of a plan to offset taxes in the resort, many non-casino attractions got a major push from the alliance’s ad campaigns and events. Owners of those attractions say that they will be hurt by the alliance’s dissolution.
“I think we’re going to take a real hit,” Tony Catanoso, owner of the Boardwalk’s Steel Pier amusement park told the Press of Atlantic City. “To buy the exposure I got from the ACA in the print media and TV ads, I would have had to spend millions. That’s something we could never afford.”
