Sept. 12, 2012--Developers of a proposed Hard Rock casino hotel in Atlantic City are facing a deadline today to post a $1 million bond and submit construction timetables for a project already delayed for months.

As of Tuesday, the New Jersey Casino Control Commission was still waiting to hear from the development group, a partnership between Hard Rock International and the New York-based financial firm Och-Ziff Capital Management.

The commission holds its monthly meeting today, but it was not immediately clear whether it will take action on the Hard Rock project.

In March, the commission gave Hard Rock's developers a six-month extension -- until today -- to make the $1 million bond payment, as well as submit a schedule for starting and completing the project.

Earlier this year, Hard Rock officials explained they were encountering delays in securing a New Jersey environmental permit for construction of the beachfront project and needed more time.

Hard Rock has proposed building the first of two, smaller-scale casinos approved for the Boardwalk. Gov. Chris Christie signed legislation in 2011 allowing those projects to have as few as 200 rooms, compared to Atlantic City's previous minimum threshold of 500 rooms for casino construction.

Smaller casinos are seen as a way to bring new jobs and construction to the struggling Atlantic City market, while making it easier and cheaper for developers to build.

Hard Rock's developers have said they would start with 200 rooms, but would add a second phase consisting of an extra 650 rooms. The project is proposed at the foot of the Route 40 entryway, at the southern end of the Boardwalk.

No other developers have stepped forward yet to build the second smaller-scale casino.

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