N.J. orders that power be kept on at Revel

ATLANTIC CITY - The state has stepped into a protracted dispute at the former Revel casino hotel and issued an order that power be kept on.

The order was addressed to both new owner Glenn Straub and ACR Energy Partners, and was issued by the Department of Community Affairs and delivered by the Attorney General's Office late Wednesday. It requires that "the level of power currently being supplied to the Revel Casino and Resort property remain adequate for the continued operation of all required fire prevention and suppression systems."

Straub and ACR have been fighting over terms to continue a power supply to the massive, empty property, and had a temporary agreement that expired Wednesday. The state's order indefinitely extends that agreement and says that if power is turned off, the state will declare an "imminent hazard" and a violation of the Uniform Fire Safety Act against Straub.

The order requires that the owner correct any declared violations within 24 hours. It also notes that ACR claims to own "indispensable" electrical systems within Revel, which could make it a target for a violation as a partial "owner."

Straub said Thursday he interpreted the order to be aimed at ACR, not at his company, Polo North.

Timothy Lowry, attorney for ACR Energy, which borrowed heavily to construct a free-standing power plant across the street from Revel, said late Wednesday by text message that the order was aimed at Straub: "Straub got hit with an administrative violation and order to keep lights on."

"Power will stay on," Lowry added. On Thursday, he said ACR was "still analyzing the order."

ACR's claim of ownership of the electrical equipment inside Revel prompted a judge to issue a retraining order that bars Straub from hooking up an alternate energy source to ACR's equipment.

"It's against the supplier," Straub said of the order. The Attorney's General's Office, he said, "told them not to turn anything off. We've got everything stabilized, and our own systems pretty much ready to go. They want the energy not to have any gaps."

The order said the Department of Community Affairs conducted a walk-through inspection of the property Friday and found all fire systems "available, operating, and in good order."

Straub said the power being supplied to the six-million-square-foot property was minimal, but enough "to keep a little bit of cooling going on."

"Nothing gets messed up, employees can work in a reasonable environment," he said.

Straub completed the $82 million purchase of the bankrupt $2.4 billion Revel on April 7. Two days later, ACR cut power to the property. Power was turned back on April 29 under a two-week deal.

Straub has said he was pursuing an alternate energy source through the nearby Showboat property, which he has an option to buy from Stockton University. That property connects directly to the city grid. Straub has $26 million in escrow to purchase the Showboat property, though he said he also had 90 days to back out of that deal.

Stockton's plans to open an Atlantic City campus fizzled when Trump Entertainment Resorts said it would pursue legal action to enforce a 1988 covenant preventing any use of Showboat other than a casino hotel. The Atlantic City Council is set to vote on a redevelopment plan Wednesday to override the covenant.