Chicago Pushes Casino Proposal Deadline to Oct. 29, Wants Many ‘Impactful’ Bids
As expected, Chicago officials announced on Friday afternoon that the deadline to bow proposals for the city’s planned cassino has been extended past more than nine weeks.
The unexampled deadline is Oct. 29 at 2 pm CT. In April, when urban center officials released the petition for proposals for the evolution project, they requested documents by 2 pm CT on Aug. 23, ii weeks from this Monday.
However, as Crain’s Chicago Business reported earliest this week, the possibleness of simply one society submitting a proposal was decent a stronger likelihood after MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts – ii of the quatern gaming companies that responded to a preliminary call for for information shoemaker's last twelvemonth – in public disclosed they would clear on the opportunity.
With the clock winding down, Crain’s reported other operators verbalised interest, but needed to a greater extent time.
In a statement, Windy City Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the special time testament reserve those considering a play to do more explore into the opportunities. They can also piece of work to untroubled financing for what will potential follow a billion-dollar development, based on officials’ want for it to follow reinforced in or close downtown.
Extending the deadline for interested bidders testament permit the metropolis to pick up as many robust, impactful, and transformative proposals as possible,” Lightfoot said. “I seem send on to seeing these bids vagabond inward and workings really closely with whichever team up is in the end elect to evolve Chicago’s first-ever casino.”
In improver to extending the proposal entry period, Windy City officials will tolerate single more question-and-answer period, with young questions most the collection due to the city on Oct. 1 past 5 pm CT.
Is There a Favorite for Chicago’s Casino?
The one keep company that’s been expected to adjure on the casino is Benjamin Rush Street Gaming, a locally based companion that also responded to the RFI. Led past Chairman Neil Bluhm, Rush Street operates Rivers Casinos, which are situated in Des Plaines, IL, Schenectady, NY, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia.
A message to a Rush Street spokesperson was non instantly returned on Friday.
The Rivers Casino inwards Des Plaines, a Chicago suburbia near O’Hare International Airport, is currently the largest inward the state. Louisville-based Duke of Marlborough Downs Inc. owns the absolute majority stake in the venue, with Rush Street owning the remainder.
While Benjamin Rush Street is a Windy City company, thither are other local connections that may commit officials some pause, should it be the only if bidder for the gambling casino license. According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, Leslie Bluhm and Meredith Bluhm-Wolf, both daughters of Neil Bluhm, contributed a combined $212,500 to Lightfoot’s 2019 successful mayoral campaign.
In addition, when Chicago magazine placed Leslie Bluhm inwards its 50 Most Powerful Women inward Chicago itemisation endure year, it noted Lightfoot was a “law schooltime pal” and that the co-founder of a prominent Chicago nonprofit divine service system was “childhood friends” with Land of Lincoln Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
Those relationships, as advantageously as her “billionaire dad,” show that “Bluhm has the variety of access code to funding and policy-makers that opens doors,” the magazine publisher wrote.
When the city released the RFP nearly quartet months ago, Lightfoot said she hoped the chance would garner involvement from major Las Vegas operators, and that the look back cognitive operation would be open up and transparent.
MGM and Wynn were the only if Las Vegas-based gaming companies to respond to the RFI. Besides Benjamin Rush Street, Hard John Rock International was the other to respond. However, an RFI entry is not a prerequisite to respond to the RFP.
Impact of Extension
The telephone extension will almost certainly reason a hold up inward the selection process. Based on the time railway line inwards the original solicitation, public presentations from bidders were slated to start in belatedly September. Windy City officials would and then distinguish ace or to a greater extent bidders inwards the light to turn finalists
Under that schedule, the city would feature selected a last applier inward early 2022. That would make required to live approved past the Chicago City Council and, ultimately, the Illinois Gaming Board.
Bidders also feature the choice to defer a proposition to operate expansion slot machines at O’Hare and Midway airports.
One of the biggest challenges facing Chicago’s casino externalise is the revenue enhancement value tied to revenues. When the expanded gaming practice of law granting the metropolis a permission passed inwards 2019, the combining of the receipts receipts taxation and another impose to covering first responder pensions established an good taxation range of 72 percent. Lightfoot worked with lawmakers inwards Springfield to bring down that to near 40 percent.
The city also said it prefers workings with an operator that testament establish the total send off in a bingle phase, with such amenities as a 500-room hotel to lead with the casino. The end is to feature the permanent installation undetermined by 2025, although a temporary venue could surface sooner upon the country issuing the license.
“This historic cassino externalize stands to expand the economical vibrancy and strength of our urban center by bringing sustainable, good-paying jobs to residents from underrepresented backgrounds, and creating a world-class casino-resort that attracts visitors from all over,” Lightfoot said inward the release.