The short-term Bally’s on line casino situated in Chicago’s Medinah Temple skilled unprecedented gaming play in Could.
Bally’s Chicago posted its greatest month thus far in Could 2024 with gross gaming income of greater than $11.73 million. Bally’s plans to quickly demolish the Freedom Middle to make approach for its everlasting on line casino resort in downtown Chicago. (Picture: Chicago Tribune)
The Illinois Gaming Management Board (IGCB) stories that the Bally’s on line casino situated at 600 N. Wabash Avenue close to the Magnificent Mile gained greater than $11.73 million from gamers final month. Slots accounted for $6.98 million whereas desk video games gained $4.75 million.
Could’s $11.7 million haul represents the Bally’s Chicago on line casino’s greatest month thus far. The 35,000-square-foot gaming facility opened final September.
Our continued development demonstrates Bally’s Chicago’s recognition with locals and vacationers alike, aligns with our neighborhood engagement initiatives, and helps our dedication to accountable gaming,” mentioned Mark Wong, vice chairman and normal supervisor.
Wong mentioned the Bally’s Chicago on line casino continues to welcome new gamers into the property’s rewards program. Final month, the entire variety of enrollees climbed previous the 90,000-person mark.
Bally’s Chicago options 800 slot machines and 56 stay supplier desk video games.
Facility Stays In need of Projections
The short-term on line casino will proceed to function as Bally’s Corp. builds its everlasting built-in resort property on the Freedom Middle. The Rhode Island-based gaming agency is to take possession of the previous Chicago Tribune printing plant early subsequent month.
Bally’s is concentrating on to open the downtown Windy Metropolis on line casino and resort in 2026. The event is to incorporate a 500-room lodge, a 3,000-seat theater, 10 eating places, and a on line casino with 4,000 gaming positions. Bally’s Chicago will turn out to be the biggest on line casino in Illinois.
Funding the mission, nevertheless, hasn’t been straightforward. Bally’s continues to hunt about $800 million to help the $1.7 billion enterprise. Regardless of the funding shortfall, Wong says the mission stays “on monitor to open” in September 2026.
Could’s income report for the short-term on line casino is much-welcomed and wanted information for Bally’s. The provisional gaming facility has tremendously lagged behind pre-opening income forecasts made by metropolis officers and the on line casino firm. Although Could was the on line casino’s greatest month thus far, the income stays shy of estimates.
Town final 12 months estimated that the short-term Bally’s Chicago would win $242.7 million from gamers in 2024, or about $20.22 million a month. From January by means of Could, the on line casino gained $52.36 million, or about $10.47 million a month.
Demolition Forthcoming
Wong advised the Chicago Tribune that Bally’s will prep the Freedom Middle for demolition after turning into the complicated’s proprietor subsequent month. Bally’s paid the media group’s mother or father firm, Tribune Publishing, $150 million for the property.
The Freedom Middle opened in 1982 at a value of $185 million. The 659,000-square-foot facility is the place a number of newspapers had been printed. Together with the Chicago Tribune, the Freedom Middle was the printing hub of the Chicago Solar-Instances, Chicago Reader, and The New York Instances‘ Midwest distribution.
The newspapers’ publishing has since been relocated to the Paddock Printing Middle in Schaumburg northwest of the Chicago Loop about 10 miles northwest of O’Hare Worldwide Airport.
Tribune officers have continued to take care of three printing presses contained in the Freedom Middle within the case of an emergency breakdown at Schaumburg. However with a number of weeks of profitable printing within the bag at Paddock, the publishing firm plans to energy down the Freedom Middle presses on Sunday evening.
