Chicagoland Close to Development of Another Suburban Land-Based Casino Venue Located in Homewood, IL

Illinois has recently approved gambling expansion all over the state. Chicago operators have submitted several proposals regarding suburban location of a new gambling venue. After Union Gaming dropped each of the options, city officials came to a new idea. The choice has fallen to Homewood, located 35 miles from the south of Chicago. Homewood representatives are ready to welcome the new casino project.

More Details

The city of Chicago has just approved a proposal for the construction of a brand-new casino venue and hotel in the suburb location. The proposal comes from Wind Creek Hospitality which just closed a deal for Sands Bethlehem acquisition. The company is now offering about $454-million to create a casino venue on a 24-acre piece of land. The future venue will take place next to the highway in Homewood and East Hazel Crest location.

If everything goes well, the first part of the project will include the construction of a restaurant, casino, bars, and entertainment venues. For this part of the construction, the company will pay about $300 million. Right after the completion of the first phase, a new 64,000-square-foot facility will appear for $275 million. The second phase will include the creation of the 21-story hotel, spa and indoor pool for $154 million.

Upon the completion of both phases, the casino venue will offer 60 table games and 1,300 slot machines. The second phase will be finished 14 months after the completion of the first.

Approval

As we already mentioned, the future venue will be located around East Hazel Cast and Homewood area. It means that village officials should approve the project before it goes to State officials. Upon expected approval, Illinois Gaming Board should review and sign the proposal. The village board has already voted on the subject but results are still to be released. According to rumors, optimism is all around and casino construction is likely.

Just after setting casino in motion, city officials can expect about $155 million in revenue on an annual level. The part of the money will be shared between East Hazel Cast and Homewood and another part will go to 41 suburb towns. The venue will bring 800 full-time positions and an annual payroll of $38 million.

Source:

“Chicago suburb agrees to allow a casino in its backyard”, Erik Gibbs, calvinayre.com, October 10, 2019.