Developer Says He's Buying Pier Shops at Caesars

Philadelphia developer Bart Blatstein says he plans to buy the Pier Shops at Caesars in Atlantic City.

Blatstein tells the Press of Atlantic City on Sunday that he has an agreement to buy the high-end shopping center along the Atlantic Ocean. He would not disclose the price.

The 300,000-square-foot mall cost $200 million to develop. It landed in financial trouble shortly after opening in 2006 and was sold at a foreclosure auction five years later. An investment group that includes U.S. National Bank Association owns the Pier Shops.

The four-level shopping center was designed to put new glitz and glamour into Atlantic City, but its shops opened at the height of the market, just before the economic downturn.

Attempts to reach The Pier Shops were unsuccessful Sunday.