Chicago Casino Update: Mayor Lightfoot Invites Biggest Las Vegas Names To Apply

The sole game license in Chicago will be put up for bid by some Las Vegas entertainment companies, according to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

“I think we’ve got a tremendous amount to offer and particularly for some of the more experienced gaming interests that do have Las Vegas as their home address,” Lightfoot said, as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Early in April, the city will issue a Request for Proposals( RFP ), and by the end of the year, Chicago hopes to have selected the winning bidder.

In December, the city released the results of its initial Request For Information (RFI).

The plea was answered by eleven organizations, and the majority of prospective operators concurred that they would prefer a place near the city center.

Wynn Resorts, MGM Resorts International and Hard Rock International were among the respondents. Are they the favorites to land the Chicago casino license?

Let’s take a look, Let & rsquo.

Lightfoot is explicitly seeking applicants from Las Vegas

With the Chicago game job, Lightfoot is obviously looking to make a big splash.

The sky & rsquo is the limit for us because we want to make sure that our RFP is appealing to some of the biggest gaming companies in the world. I don’t want to brand names, but it’s obvious that some of them may make us extremely happy if they applied. & rdquo,

Wynn Resorts expressed curiosity.

“When a large city of significance decides to consider a gaming resort, we are interested. Chicago fits that profile,” Wynn spokesman Michael WeavertoldCrain’s Chicago Business.

The various two most well-known companies to react to the RFI were MGM and Hard Rock. They seem to be in the working as well.

Lightfoot wants to draw in the best US users, but that is not her single goal.

& ldquo, I’m hoping that many of the applicants will have addresses in Las Vegas. I should clarify that I want to ensure that this is an entirely transparent and open approach. We & rsquo, we’re not going to tip the scale in anyone’s favor. We simply need someone who truly understands how fantastic this prospect is and who will view it as more than just a box construction project; rather, we want them to be an integral part of an extremely interesting entertainment complex. & rdquo,

Lightfoot anticipates that the Chicago game did debut by at least 2025.

Having said that, six of the RFI responders stated that they would still like a temporary game while the permanent service is being built.

The casino operation in Chicago has been slow.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed gaming expansion into law in 2019, approving six new casino locations in the Land of Lincoln.

Fast-forward to 2021, and only one area — Rockford — has been determined to be initially suitable for a casino. The majority of users continue the implementation process.

Hard Rock is the casino’s owner in Rockford.

But compared to the other five, the game process in Chicago is moving even more slowly. regions.

For a while, two major obstacles were to charge: the tax level and divergent viewpoints on where to locate.

The legislature lowered the tax requirement, and there is near consensus on a downtown location.

Previously, Lightfoot had suggested these five areas:

• Harborside
• Reese, Michael
• Condition and Pershing
• Kostner and Roosevelt
• Steel from US

Most of these are not central; rather, they are on the south or north sides of the city.

Based on Lightfoot & rsquo’s most recent remarks, it doesn’t appear that she would be against a downtown location. And given that the vast majority of RFI respondents favor a city game, that is probably what will occur.

Although it has been a slow-moving approach, it appears that we will make significant progress in 2021.

Chicagoans aren’t counting on a Bears Super Bowl in the next four years, but they could get their casino.