License Denial Due To Shooting Incident Shouldn’t Delay Hard Rock Casino Progress

Written By Joe Boozell on May 11, 2021
hard rock casino rockford delay

Due to the proposed facility owner & rsquo’s 2020 arrest in connection with a shooting incident, the Illinois Gaming Board ( IGB ) denied Hard Rock Casino Rockford & requo, s temporary license in April.

Until recently, the specific details of the denial were not part of public record.

However, Hard Rock’s plans for permanent and temporary casinos remain intact. The expense group, 815Entertainment, which is partnering with Hard Rock, has purchased the capability to expedite the process.

The website is still the same.

The proposed location for the temporary Hard Rock Casino in Rockford is the Giovanni’s Restaurant and Convention Center.

Joseph Castrogiovanni, the user, did not report the shooting incident in July to the IGB in a timely manner.

Castrogiovanni did not inform the IGB about the apprehension until September. Per IGB rules, all prosecutions are required to be reported without delay.

Police detained him for aggravated firearm discharge. It is alleged that Castrogiovanni fired two shots into a car parked in the driveway of his private property. One of the bullets reportedly hit the vehicle.

During the event, no one was injured. Castogiovanni confessed to reckless conduct in October and was sentenced to a one-year probation period.

Michael Iasparro, the attorney for Castrogiovanni, stated that the incident was a result of a legitimate concern for the safety of Castrogiovanni and his wife.

IGB Administrator Marcus Fruchter stated that the denial was driven by a desire to prevent compromising the integrity of gaming and attempts to discredit state and Illinois gaming.

Iasparro has responded by requesting a session with the table. He stated that he had questioned numerous people about other residents of Rockford, many of whom had Italian surnames and were long deceased, during Castrogiovanni’s regulatory interview.

Iasparro states that Mr. and Mrs. Castrogiovanni are not connected or associated with organized crime, be it European or otherwise, in simple terms.

What does this mean for the game Hard Rock Rockford?

In February, the IGB preliminarily deemed Hard Rock Casino Rockford suitable for a permanent license.

However, Hard Rock is still waiting for the final approval from the IGB. Although this situation seems disadvantageous for the temporary service, the acquisition of 815 Entertainment could render the issue insignificant.

Mayor Tom McNamara of Rockford said that there will be no delay in the timeline due to ownership change.

“We understand that the current owners of the temporary casino site are planning to sell it to existing investors. We do not believe that this change of ownership will slow down the gaming process.”

According to the plan, the Rockford game will replace the ancient Clock Tower Resort. This development is expected to create 1,200 permanent jobs and an additional 1,000 jobs during the construction phase.

There are currently no various casinos in Illinois.

The 2019 games expansion bill in Illinois included six fresh game licenses.

Currently, no licenses have been issued. However, despite this setback, Hard Rock Rockford is the most advanced in the process compared to any other new applicants.

There are six brand-new game certificates available for purchase in the locations listed below:

  • Rockford
  • Waukegan
  • County of Williamson
  • Danville
  • South neighbourhoods
  • Chicago

IGB has yet to declare any other applicant or candidate as provisionally suitable. Despite a large number of applicants in October 2019, That & rsquo.

Hard Rock Rockford must hope that this won’t further delay the authorization process, for the sake of maintaining competition.

The Beloit casino project, valued at $405 million, recently received final approval from Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The project is located close to Rockford, a city about a half-hour drive away.

If the Beloit game opens before the Rockford game, it could potentially harm the Rockford game in the long run.

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Boozell, Joe

Joe Boozell has served as a college sports writer for NCAA.com since 2015. His work has also been featured on Bleacher Report, FoxSports.com, and NBA.com. In his younger years, Boozell faced off against Anthony Davis and Frank Kaminsky in the basketball scene of Chicagoland, which you can probably guess didn’t go too well for him.

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