ATLANTIC CITY -- It's likely that in the next few months, the Trump Plaza could be demolished, a city official said Wednesday.

The former hotel and casino on the Boardwalk, once owned by Donald Trump before he became president, was closed in September 2014. It was one of four casinos in the city to close that year.

"They've hired a contracter to come in and clean out the rooms," Dale Finch, director of Atlantic City's Department of Licensing and Inspections, told NJ Advance Media.

"I've been advised that they're going to implode the building," he said.

A representative for Icahn Enterprises, which owns Trump Plaza, did not immediately return a request for comment Wednesday.

The billionaire Carl Icahn took over the Trump casino properties when he bought Trump Entertainment Resorts out of bankruptcy. In a March statement about the sale of the Trump Taj Mahal to Hard Rock International, Icahn Enterprises had said it was continuing with attempts to sell the Plaza.

Demolition will likely happen within the next four months, Finch said, adding that no demolition permit has yet been filed with the city.

The building will have to be tested for asbestos before it comes down, in accordance to state laws relating to demolitions, Finch added.

"This is a pretty big project," Finch said.

Rummy Pandit, executive director of the Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism at Stockton University, said the Plaza site, even without a building, would be a notable piece of real estate on the market. It's right along the Boardwalk and the ocean, but also extends out to a very visible spot on Atlantic Avenue that's close to the Tanger Outlets.

"As you exit the Atlantic City Expressway, that's the first area you hit," he said.

"You could certainly have a fabulous view and great visibility," Pandit added. "Hotels, condos. ... the location is prime."

It's not clear quite how much the demolition would cost, but it's safe to say it would be millions. The demolition of the Riviera casino in Las Vegas cost $42 million, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Joe Brandt can be reached at jbrandt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JBrandt_NJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.