The AC visitor is very different than those going to Vegas. Our peak
visitor totals were around 35 million, as many as 40% arriving on line rum
busses from NY City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington and all points in New
Jersey. Because of our nearness to 33 million US residents, we never attracted
air service, that would have allowed us to reach all on North America, like Las
Vegas.
In fact our 35 million visitors were probably no more than 5 to 6 million
individuals, many visiting 10 or 20 times a year. So we had to have a constantly
changing lineup at our Super Star Theater. If you are going to include
performances at the Boardwalk Hall or other larger venues, it may be impractical
to include a minimum of 4 visits annually, before the tax breaks commence. It
is reasonable to require 4 visits at Theaters with less than 2 thousand seats,
but the bill should not require more than one or two major annual events at the
Boardwalk Hall, or on the beach, possibly 2 shows at each event. Without this
change, I am afraid we will discourage performers, like Madonna or Britney.