Chicago Allows Bally's Another Year to Open Permanent Casino
Plans for opening a first casino in Chicago began in 2019, culminating with the selection of Bally's as the operator in 2022.
The $1.7 billion project - to be located along the Chicago River at the site of the former Chicago Tribune newspaper building at Chicago Avenue and Halston Street - initially was expected to open in late 2025 or early 2026.
In the meantime, Bally's opened a temporary facility at the Medinah Temple building in September 2023, so that the company could gain revenue while the city could collect taxes on that revenue.
But the plans have gone through a few detours, leaving the September 2026 opening deadline in jeopardy.
So in June 2026, the Illinois Gaming Board authorized a one-year extension to give Bally's enough time to complete the project properly. The temporary casino will remain open during this time.
Bally's generated $15.3 million in tax revenue in 2025, below the 2024 figure and also below initial projections. The permanent facility, according to Bally's, could generate up to $200 million annually in tax revenue.
Chicago casino melodrama
Illinois Rep. Kam Buckner, who sponsored legislation earlier this year to allow for the extension, reflects widespread skepticism about the project's fate.
"The whole thing may be in jeopardy, right?" Buckner told the Chicago Sun-Times in January 2026. "But the only way to figure it out is to let the process play out for another 12 months. All I'm asking for is to give [Bally's] the space they need to hopefully make this thing work."
In June 2025, Fitch Ratings revised its outlook on Bally's from "stable" to "negative" due to the large amount of debt the company is carrying.
In fact, in mid-2024, it was not clear if Bally's had the necessary funding to complete the project. That's when Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. (GLPI) agreed to pay $940 million in construction costs while also buying the project real estate for $250 million and leasing it back to Bally's.
Work on the casino has been suspended several times - including once when debris from the demolition of the previous building landed in the Chicago River, and again when unapproved contractors with alleged ties to organized crime were spotted on the project site.
Another issue is the fact that in December 2025, the Chicago City Council - over the objections of Mayor Brandon Johnson - voted to approve licensing thousands of video poker and video slot machines all over the city. The council estimated that 80% of the more than 3,000 city liquor licensees would apply for approval.
Six months later, six Chicago bars and restaurants were approved to install the machines - even while Johnson's battle to overturn such licensing continues. Bally's officials, naturally, have sided with the mayor in the dispute.
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What will the permanent Chicago casino look like?
Bally's achieved a milestone in May 2026 with a "topping off" ceremony, placing the final structural beam at the peak of the casino facility.
The casino is part of a 30-acre redevelopment plan to reconnect the River West and Near West Side neighborhoods.
The plan is for the permanent casino to have 3,400 slot machines; 173 table games; a 500-room hotel with a rooftop bar; a 3,000-seat entertainment center; almost a dozen food and beverage venues; public outdoor riverfront space; and more than 3,000 parking spaces.
The casino is to be a centerpiece of a 35-story glass and metal hotel tower, and the project will extend the Chicago Riverwalk by almost 700 yards from West Ontario St. to Chicago Ave. A water taxi stop also is in the plans.
There also is to be 30,000 square feet of exhibit space that will display the work of numerous local Chicago artists. The design may achieve LEED Gold environmental certification, given its layout.
The parking garage also is to be located atop the casino, so that the new project will not impact nearby street parking. The original signage from the former Chicago Tribune printing plant also will be displayed as a nostalgic touch.
Bally's also has big plans in New York City
The lone surprise winner in the high-stakes chase for one of the three coveted New York City casino licenses in December 2025 - the Metropolitan Park and Resorts World sites in Queens were favorites - was the Bally's casino project in The Bronx.
The company secured $1.1 billion in private credit loans in February 2026 for the 16-acre site along the East River just north of Manhattan near the Whitestone Bridge. A portion of that credit was directed to the Bally's casino project in Chicago.
The $4 billion casino development of three million square feet is to include a half-million square feet of gaming space with 3,500 slot machines and 250 table games.
An event center with 2,000 seats and 4,600 parking spaces also are part of the plan. More than $600 million in community benefit commitments includes $100 million in waterfront and park enhancements, plus $75 million for transportation upgrades both for roadways and enhanced public transit.
Once the casino opens sometime in 2030, the annual local and state tax revenue from the project is projected at $357 million.
