In the grand theatre of New Jersey’s glittering casino industry, a salient figure at the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority is poised on the brink of departure. Sean Pattwell, the executive director whose leadership voyaged through the turbulent waters of state financing and casino revenue management, is on the cusp of resigning, an act that hovers on the horizon like the final curtain call of a seasoned performer.
His tenure with the CRDA, which began on April 1, 2022, marked a shift from his previous sojourns in the insurance sector to the high stakes world of casino reinvestment—a stage where he applied the breadth of his academic prowess, with a Bachelor’s degree and three Master’s degrees already in his intellectual arsenal, and a fourth in literature being forged in the hallowed halls of Harvard University.
Pattwell’s exit strategy seems to be formed under the banner of exploring new vistas and embracing other opportunities that beckon beyond the CRDA’s domain. However, the timeline of his farewell remains shrouded in the mists of the coming days, with the specifics yet to crystallize.
The genesis story of the CRDA itself is one of legacy and foresight. It sprang into being post a pivotal 1976 vote by New Jersey’s denizens who cracked the door open to casino gambling in the famed Atlantic City. In its wake, the State Legislature in 1984 sculpted the CRDA, a body tasked with the noble mission of not only collecting a 1.25% slice of the casinos’ gaming revenues but also reinvesting this wealth into projects that would forge positive change across the city’s landscape.
Perhaps the most evocative of tokens from the CRDA’s touch are the luxury taxes it imposes—a 9% levy on hotel revenues, 3% on alcohol sales, and a similar 9% cut from entertainment receipts. Additionally, a nightly $3 charge per vehicle parking at the casinos pours into the CRDA’s coffers, formulating a potent fiscal potion meant to rejuvenate and transform Atlantic City.
However, the path of progress is often fraught with discord and critique. Dissent has been voiced over how the CRDA funds are deployed, questioning the veracity of their impact. Contentious was the agency’s significant financial backing of the Miss America pageant, which saw Boardwalk Hall play host to sequins and sashes until a swell of opposition led to the severance of the more than $4 million yearly subsidy post-2019—an exodus that saw the pageant relocate to the confines of Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun.
The CRDA has not escaped the scrutinous eye of audits either, with a 2018 review by State Auditor Stephen Eells unearthing inefficiencies and dissonances in the use of funds and in dealings with third-party vendors. Defending against the storm, then-chair Robert Mulcahy assured the public of the annual independent audits yielding unmodified clean opinions, attesting to the agency’s commitment to financial propriety.
With Pattwell’s imminent adieu, the CRDA now stands on the threshold of a new epoch, bracing to embark on a nationwide quest for a successor to helm the ship. Pattwell himself, renowned for his reclusive stature, rare public disclosures, and a proclivity for steering clear of media engagement, leaves a legacy of mystery in the annals of the agency’s history—an enigmatic chapter soon to close.
As the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority continues its eternal dance with the fortunes of Atlantic City, Sean Pattwell prepares to take a bow, his narrative within CRDA drawing to a close, but the story of the agency, laden with wealth and whispers of controversy, marches steadfast into the future.
