A spokesperson for Bally’s said plans for a permanent Chicago casino in the River West neighborhood are still on track despite comments by Mayor Brandon Johnson this week published in the Chicago Sun-Times.
A spokesperson for Bally’s said plans for a permanent Chicago casino in the River West neighborhood are still on track despite comments by Mayor Brandon Johnson this week published in the Chicago Sun-Times.
In that interview, the editorial board asked the mayor if he believes the permanent casino will ultimately be built. Johnson was noncommittal, saying that was "still to be determined."
On Tuesday, a casino spokesperson reiterated to NBC Chicago that plans for the new $1.7 billion casino are still on track.
Bally’s plans to take ownership of the River West property on July 5, with a tentative opening date in Sept. 2026.
Ald. Walter Burnett also downplayed the mayor's comments.
“I don't think it was that the mayor is not on board. I think he may have gotten caught up at that editorial board on some questions that he couldn't actually answer. I think Bally’s is on track, I just came from a vendor fair with Bally’s,” Burnett said.
“I think the bigger issue is whether or not Bally’s can actually afford to develop the site,” Ald. Brendan Reilly added. “If we look at what we’re hearing from Wall Street, they’re short hundreds of millions of dollars in cash to deliver the casino.”
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In Sept. 2023, a temporary casino opened inside the Medinah Temple building in River North. The company said last month that May marked the most successful month yet for the casino, with the highest revenue ($13.8 million) and admissions (more than 118,000 people) since opening last fall.
On Tuesday, when NBC Chicago asked if Johnson wanted to clarify statements he made to the Sun-Times Editorial Board, his office said in a statement:
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“The City is pleased that Bally’s has reached its highest revenue numbers so far, and continues to be committed to the permanent casino project.”
Bally’s held a diversity vendor fair at the Chicago Teachers Union Hall on Tuesday, which provided minority-owned, women-owned and veteran-owned businesses and businesses owned by people with disabilities the opportunity to meet with casino representatives.
A public meeting on demolition of the casino site is scheduled for Friday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Jesse White Community Center.
