City Is Auctioning Chance to Dynamite Trump Plaza

Part of President Trump's former empire is going to come crashing down next month—and Atlantic City wants to use the moment to raise money for a good cause. The former Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino is being dynamited on Jan. 29, and the city is auctioning off the chance to be the person who presses the button for the implosion. "Some of Atlantic City’s iconic moments happened there, but on his way out, Donald Trump openly mocked Atlantic City, saying he made a lot of money and then got out,” says Mayor Marty Small, per CBS Philadelphia. "I wanted to use the demolition of this place to raise money for charity."

Small hopes to raise more than $1 million with the auction, which will benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Atlantic City, reports the Press of Atlantic City. The casino opened in 1984. The building, now owned by billionaire Carl Icahn, has been empty since the casino closed in 2014, and the city says its crumbling facade has become a hazard. Trump probably won't mind seeing the building demolished: In 2014, he sued to have his name taken off the casino, saying its "appalling condition" was damaging his brand, which "has become synonymous with the highest levels of quality, luxury, prestige, and success." (More Atlantic City stories.)