I didn't call him a liar, I called him a f----- liar
City Council approves Bally’s $1.7 billion casino in River West
The plan for a casino along the Chicago River passed 41-7, but not before a screaming match between Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, who accused her of being “more worried about campaign contributions than doing the right thing for the city of Chicago.”
By Fran Spielman
May 25, 2022, 2:22pm CDT
A rendering shows one of the main entrances to Bally’s proposed casino in River West.
Provided
Chicago’s 30-year quest for a casino and entertainment complex is drawing to a close, amid hopes it will produce the jackpot needed to bail out police and fire pension funds.
Less than three weeks after Mayor Lori Lightfoot put her chips on Bally’s $1.7 billion River West bid, the City Council authorized Bally’s to build a casino at Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street and open a temporary facility at Medinah Temple in River North.
The vote came after a 90-minute debate that included a screaming match between Lightfoot and Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th), a casino critic.
The council also signed off on a host agreement that includes a “labor peace” pact and Bally’s commitment to pay construction workers and permanent casino employees a “living wage.”
That same agreement also codifies the $40 million upfront payment to be placed in a “lock box” for police and fire pensions and other financial, contracting and hiring commitments.
That includes a $2 million contribution to public safety at the temporary casino and $1 million for public safety at the permanent site, as well as $1 million earmarked for “community benefits” to be determined by local Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. (27th).
“Here we go. Put your seatbelts on,” Zoning Committee Chair Tom Tunney (44th), who led the casino committee, told colleagues as debate began shortly before 1 p.m.
The eventual 41-7 vote capped a frenzied week of casino votes at City Hall.
After the vote, Lightfoot thanked labor leaders from the rostrum for helping deliver a Chicago casino after decades of “futility.” She did the same later during a cast-of-thousands celebratory news conference, calling the casino a “major, major milestone for our city.”
“I’m not patting myself on the back. I’m not doing a victory lap. What I’m saying is that, after 30 years of futility, the men and women of this city will have good-paying jobs that they can build a future on. What I’m also saying is that the taxpayers of this city will not have to be called upon again to shore up our police and fire pensions,” Lightfoot told a reporter who questioned the self-congratulation.
Now, Lightfoot can campaign for reelection by a project that eluded her predecessors — if the Illinois Gaming Board OKs the deal quickly enough.
This rendering of the proposed Bally’s casino in River West shows its Chicago River frontage.
Provided
A dizzying schedule of votes on Monday had set the stage for final passage.
The council met Monday, then recessed as the Bally’s plan was muscled through the special casino committee. The council reconvened later to tee up the plan for Wednesday’s final vote.
It was a schedule without precedent — even for a City Council long known as a rubber stamp.
RELATED$1.7 billion Bally’s Chicago casino clears key hurdle
Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) had even invoked the dreaded parking meter deal to describe the legislative process used by Lightfoot, who campaigned on openness, transparency and community input.
“This has gone far too quickly at a breakneck speed. The last time we did something like that, we got burned on it,” Reilly said Wednesday.
“All of us have been put in this pressure-cooker artificially. ... This is moving too quickly.”
(The city in 2008 leased its metered spots for 75 years to a private company. Taxpayers got $1.16 billion up front. As of last June, the private investors already had raked in nearly $1.7 billion, with six decades left to go.)
Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) spoke against a casino proposal for a site in River West and also is upset that a last-minute switch means the temporary site, at Medinah Temple, will be in his ward.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Mayoral challenger Ray Lopez (15th) blamed mayoral election politics for the mad rush.
“$40 million is what we’re rushing for. ... We’re rushing because we need a positive spin for 2023. That’s what this is about,” Lopez said.
For Reilly and neighboring Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd), it was an uphill and futile climb against the formidable lobbying muscle of organized labor.
The plan for a casino along the Chicago River passed 41-7, but not before a screaming match between Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, who accused her of being “more worried about campaign contributions than doing the right thing for the city of Chicago.”
By Fran Spielman
May 25, 2022, 2:22pm CDT
A rendering shows one of the main entrances to Bally’s proposed casino in River West.
Provided
Chicago’s 30-year quest for a casino and entertainment complex is drawing to a close, amid hopes it will produce the jackpot needed to bail out police and fire pension funds.
Less than three weeks after Mayor Lori Lightfoot put her chips on Bally’s $1.7 billion River West bid, the City Council authorized Bally’s to build a casino at Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street and open a temporary facility at Medinah Temple in River North.
The vote came after a 90-minute debate that included a screaming match between Lightfoot and Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th), a casino critic.
The council also signed off on a host agreement that includes a “labor peace” pact and Bally’s commitment to pay construction workers and permanent casino employees a “living wage.”
That same agreement also codifies the $40 million upfront payment to be placed in a “lock box” for police and fire pensions and other financial, contracting and hiring commitments.
That includes a $2 million contribution to public safety at the temporary casino and $1 million for public safety at the permanent site, as well as $1 million earmarked for “community benefits” to be determined by local Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. (27th).
“Here we go. Put your seatbelts on,” Zoning Committee Chair Tom Tunney (44th), who led the casino committee, told colleagues as debate began shortly before 1 p.m.
The eventual 41-7 vote capped a frenzied week of casino votes at City Hall.
After the vote, Lightfoot thanked labor leaders from the rostrum for helping deliver a Chicago casino after decades of “futility.” She did the same later during a cast-of-thousands celebratory news conference, calling the casino a “major, major milestone for our city.”
“I’m not patting myself on the back. I’m not doing a victory lap. What I’m saying is that, after 30 years of futility, the men and women of this city will have good-paying jobs that they can build a future on. What I’m also saying is that the taxpayers of this city will not have to be called upon again to shore up our police and fire pensions,” Lightfoot told a reporter who questioned the self-congratulation.
Now, Lightfoot can campaign for reelection by a project that eluded her predecessors — if the Illinois Gaming Board OKs the deal quickly enough.
This rendering of the proposed Bally’s casino in River West shows its Chicago River frontage.
Provided
A dizzying schedule of votes on Monday had set the stage for final passage.
The council met Monday, then recessed as the Bally’s plan was muscled through the special casino committee. The council reconvened later to tee up the plan for Wednesday’s final vote.
It was a schedule without precedent — even for a City Council long known as a rubber stamp.
RELATED$1.7 billion Bally’s Chicago casino clears key hurdle
Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) had even invoked the dreaded parking meter deal to describe the legislative process used by Lightfoot, who campaigned on openness, transparency and community input.
“This has gone far too quickly at a breakneck speed. The last time we did something like that, we got burned on it,” Reilly said Wednesday.
“All of us have been put in this pressure-cooker artificially. ... This is moving too quickly.”
(The city in 2008 leased its metered spots for 75 years to a private company. Taxpayers got $1.16 billion up front. As of last June, the private investors already had raked in nearly $1.7 billion, with six decades left to go.)
Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) spoke against a casino proposal for a site in River West and also is upset that a last-minute switch means the temporary site, at Medinah Temple, will be in his ward.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Mayoral challenger Ray Lopez (15th) blamed mayoral election politics for the mad rush.
“$40 million is what we’re rushing for. ... We’re rushing because we need a positive spin for 2023. That’s what this is about,” Lopez said.
For Reilly and neighboring Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd), it was an uphill and futile climb against the formidable lobbying muscle of organized labor.
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