Bally’s is the premier provider of land-based gaming and interactive entertainment in the United States. Our history dates back to 2010, when we operated a single casino property – Twin River Casino – located in Lincoln, Rhode Island.
From those humble beginnings, we’ve grown significantly to become one of the largest regional casino operators in the U.S. with 16 casinos across 11 states (including pending acquisitions). With more than 10,000 employees, our operations include 15,800 slot machines, 500 table games, and over 5,300 hotel rooms.
In addition to expanding our casino footprint, we’ve also evolved our entertainment offerings to include online sports betting, internet gaming, daily fantasy sports, free-to-play game services, and 21 regional sports networks.
At Bally’s, we embrace a community-first policy that is a fundamental and defining principle of who we are as a company. In every community in which we operate, we build strong, lasting partnerships with local residents and businesses.
We’re also committed to improving the communities in which we operate, promoting a diverse and inclusive workplace for our valued team members, and taking decisive action to minimize our environmental footprint. We strive to make a positive impact and embrace our responsibility to promote sustainable business practices and responsible gaming.
We’re the largest and most diverse casino operator of all the bidders. We understand what it takes to develop and operate a successful casino that supports its surrounding communities. We’re also conflict free, with no ownership stake in any nearby casino. In fact, our closest casino is more than 150 driving miles from Chicago.
Our vision for Bally’s Chicago is a world-class entertainment destination that embraces local culture and drives tourism to Chicago. Our project will be built by the community, of the community and for the community.
Bally’s Chicago’s minority investors have a 25% ownership stake in the project, and include philanthropists, business owners, sports stars, celebrities, and everyday Chicagoans from the African American and Latino communities, as well as other ethnic and gender representation.
Bally’s Chicago has set a 46% MBE/WBE construction goal, exceeding city requirements. Its construction management team is the Chicago Community Builder’s Collective, a partnership between Brown & Momen, Inc., dEscoto, Inc., LiveWire Construction, Inc., Milhouse Engineering & Construction, Powers & Sons Construction, UJAMAA Construction, Inc., and Riteway-Huggins Construction Services, Inc. – all MBE-certified firms – and SQN Associates, LLC a W/M/DBE-certified firm, and Gilbane Building Company, a leading national building company with more than four decades of experience working in Chicago.
We’re also committed to becoming an engaged and active member of the city, deeply woven into the fabric of the entire Chicago community. To ensure that our project fosters significant opportunities for Chicago’s local groups and organizations, as well as small, emerging and minority-owned businesses, we’ve entered into strategic partnerships with multiple leaders of the Chicago community, including Black Contractors Owners / Executives, Black Men United, Black United Fund of Illinois, City Colleges of Chicago, Chicago Minority Supplier Development Council, Chicago Urban League, Coalition of African American Leaders, Hispanic Professional Network, Illinois Restaurant Association, and Illinois Black Chamber of Commerce.
Our proposal provides the best location for an entertainment casino resort in the City of Chicago. The project will be located at the current Chicago Tribune Publishing Center.
This $1.7+ billion project will become the flagship property of our company and be a destination entertainment casino resort featuring world-class non-gaming amenities. We believe in building a casino and entertainment destination that Chicago can be proud of--a project that is a product of the community, built by the community and for the benefit of the entire community. The construction of the project will be led by the Chicago Community Builder’s Collective (CCBC), a partnership consisting primarily of minority-owned firms.
Our proposal also provides a generous financial package to the City of Chicago, its residents, and business owners. We are committing to a $40 million upfront payment, plus a recurring annual investment of $2 million to support City community programs, and $2 million to support the City’s general fund. Additionally, we estimate that Bally’s Chicago will attract more than 4.5 million visitors annually, generating upwards of $20 billion in economic value to the City of Chicago over an 8-year period. We have set a 46% minority construction goal and a 30% vendor diversity goal for operational purchasing.
Finally, our innovative “Bally Rewards / Community Rewards” program is designed to allow players to redeem their points and encourage spending at participating small / minority businesses throughout Chicago.
Bally’s Chicago puts Chicagoans first. As part of our community-first efforts, we intend to provide:
Our vision for Bally’s Chicago is a world-class entertainment destination that serves as an added economic engine for Chicago’s communities and supports the growth and development of small and emerging businesses.
Bally’s believes it is important for our business to reflect the local community. We will prioritize hiring a local workforce to increase employment and expand access to economic opportunities for Chicagoans, as well as ensure an authentic, local experience for our guests. During both the construction and operation phases of Bally’s Chicago, we plan to have at least 50% of total work hours performed by City residents and of that 50% total work hours, 7.5% to be fulfilled by residents who come from areas surrounding the site.
Additionally, Bally’s Chicago is committed to harnessing its buying power and experience as a casino operator to build a diverse workforce at all levels with participation by women, minorities, the LGBTQ+ community, veterans and persons with a disability. Toward that end, Bally’s Chicago’s goods and services procurement process will be fair, transparent and inclusive. Bally’s Chicago is committed to awarding a minimum 30% of addressable spend to MBE firms, WBE firms, veteran-owned firms and disadvantaged-owned businesses.
Bally’s Chicago’s minority-led construction management team, Chicago Community Builder’s Collective (CCBC), includes:
All minority-owned companies that are a part of CCBC are MBE-certified firms. In addition, the team also will include:
Non-profit and association partnerships include: Black Contractors Owners / Executives, Black Men United, Black United Fund of Illinois, Chicago Minority Supplier Development Council, Chicago Urban League, Coalition of African American Leaders, Hispanic Professional Network, Illinois Restaurant Association, and Illinois Black Chamber of Commerce.
Educational and training partnership will be with the City Colleges of Chicago.
V3 Companies (“V3”), a metro Chicago-based engineering firm, specializing in transportation engineering, conducted a traffic analysis at peak hours throughout the week. Their analysis showed that generally, the local street system could accommodate either of our projects with little issue.
23 intersections were analyzed and only a few intersections were found to experience a slight increase of traffic congestion with our project. To address this, identified improvements include the installation of 3 new traffic signals, modernizing 3 existing traffic signals, a general retiming of the traffic signals surrounding the site, and making new roadway improvements and road markings. Our project will fully absorb the cost of these improvements.
V3 also reviewed other modes of transportation and determined the project could take full advantage of the public transit and bikeways system providing access to our project, reducing the demand for private care access.
“Bally Rewards / Community Rewards” is a unique, interactive program that will incentivize players and guests to redeem the rewards they earn while playing at Bally's Chicago at local participating businesses. It is a win / win for Chicago’s small businesses and Bally’s Chicago.
Working with our local partners, we will solicit small businesses within the Chicagoland area to join this innovative program and will work with participating organizations to offer the best array of rewards.
To stimulate the use of members’ rewards at local businesses, a “virtual mall” will be attached to our gift shop where customers can view in real-time what is available at these local businesses. This type of partnership will bring value to the customer and revenue to our local business partners.
Rewards are calculated based on time played and average bet, with no regard for outcome. This means that all of Bally’s Chicago players can have a winning experience while accumulating points.
In addition to earned points, Bally’s Chicago will design promotions to drive spending activity at participating small businesses.
Responsible gaming is a top priority for Bally’s. In 2020, we provided more than 4,500 hours of responsible gaming training for staff members. We have a corporate policy that requires all employees to be trained on responsible gaming to ensure that staff members are prepared to provide assistance to individuals who may be unable to keep their gambling at responsible levels. We are making a minimum commitment of $200,000 annually to provide compulsive gambling counseling and assistance.
We are also committed to ensuring that best-in-class responsible gaming practices are implemented and followed at all of our facilities, and that resources are available to support any individual who shows signs of potential problem gaming. Bally’s is also a member of the American Gaming Association’s “Have A Game Plan” responsible gaming initiative, which encourages players to set a budget, be informed, and play socially and with trusted licensed, regulated operators.