IGB To Announce Winners Of Waukegan, South Suburban Casino Licenses In January

According to Marcus Fruchter, administrator of the Illinois Gaming Board( IGB ), the winning bidders for the licenses to the Waukegan and south suburban casinos should be known by mid-January.

Fruchter announced during Thursday’s board meeting that, in a scenario where there are multiple bids for the same license in Waukegan and the south suburbs, the IGB is required to hire a consultant to assess the applicants, as per Illinois law.

The committee employed a consultant on July 9, and the IGB announced it will reach a decision in six months.

Besides securing a winning bid, the IGB will also possess preliminary eligibility results for “& ldquo. & rdquo”. Hence, the process for casino approval should ideally commence in 2022.

Fruchter remarked:

“We anticipate that within six months of the consultant being hired by the game board, a decision will be made regarding the winners of the competitive choice process for both Waukegan and the western suburbs, as well as initial suitability, based on our current knowledge.”

Below are the listed candidates for registration in Waukegan:

• Waukegan Rivers Casino, also known as CDI-RSG Waugan, LLC
• Full House Resorts, Inc. located in America
• North Point Casino, doing business as Lakeside Casino, LLC

Below are the candidates for the southern affluent license:

• Southland Live operating as an LLC
• LLC South Suburban Development
• LLC Wind Creek

A special meeting is scheduled for Oct. 13, during which the applicants will have the opportunity to present their cases to the board.

The Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) has to date deemed casinos in Rockford and Williamson County as “preliminarily suitable”. However, these licenses only drew interest from a single bidder, thus hastening the processes.

Most people would not typically describe the Illinois casino license process as “speedy”. Numerous development groups have been in the application process since as far back as October 2019.

Why people dislike the fresh game system in Illinois

Recently, five lawmakers from the southern suburbs attempted to involve Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker in the new casino process to expedite the pace.

In their letter to Pritzker, they wrote:

“Over the past two years, your constituents in South Suburban Chicago have faced numerous challenges. However, none may be as severe as the lack of action from their own government on initiatives aimed at stimulating local economies, raising incomes, and generating new employment opportunities.”

Please encourage IGB to take action. “Every day we delay the casino project in the Southland – where the annual household income can be as low as $27,000 – families in our area are denied the opportunity to secure better jobs and higher incomes.”

Many believed a decision would be made by October 2020. However, the IGB postponed the decision at that time. It seems that the bureaucracy in Illinois has somewhat hindered the process.

Despite January 2022 being considerably later than October 2020, Thursday’s meeting provided interested parties with a definite timeframe.

Update on Walker & rsquo, s Bluff Casino

Earlier this year, the IGB found Walker & Bluff’s Casino in Williamson County. On Thursday, Walker & Bluff requested to modify its application.

It has not yet requested to initiate the construction process but expects to do so in the forthcoming days. Walker & rsquo’s Bluff then projects to commence construction in October, estimating the development phase to last roughly 18 months.

The tentative opening date for Walker’s Bluff is currently set for April 2023. However, it is not expected to open any part of the establishment before that date, although this might change depending on the progression of the design process.