The Illinois Gaming Board has given 815 Entertainment LLC approval to build a temporary casino in Rockford at the former Giovanni's at 610 N. Bell School Road. This is the first of the six new casino locations approved in the state's 2019 gambling expansion to be given the green light to begin construction.
An article in 4Flush states that the company will need several more approvals before it opens its doors to the public. The developer will not start the structure from the ground up, as it has already picked out a building that previously served as a restaurant. The 815 Entertainment LLC Investment team owns this restaurant.
The Hard Rock Rockford Casino will operate for two years. State Senator Dave Syverson had been pushing for this project for over 20 years and was excited that it was finally maturing. The senator said having a casino in the state could bring positive impacts to the local economy.
According to WREX 13 Newsroom, the temporary casino will include:
- More than 600 gaming machines (no table games)
- A Sportsbook
- Two restaurants
- Bar areas
The construction of the temporary site will take roughly 90 days. The renovations will cost an estimated $8.8 million. The casino must obtain the Illinois Gaming Board's permission to operate and receive approval of the casino's security and surveillance plans.
The 37,790 square foot building can be operational for up to two years while the permanent location is under construction.
Casino.org reports that the temporary casino is less than a mile away from the location of the $310 million permanent venue on the east side of town. Developers are expected to invest about $8 million into the facility once known as Giovanni's.
Once the temporary casino opens, payments to the city of Rockford will start. According to the information submitted to the Illinois Gaming Board, the casino will pay at least $7 million each calendar year. It will also make payments based on the net income of the temporary and permanent establishments.
As long as the temporary casino is open, Rockford will get an amount equal to at least 15 percent of the net revenue, and no less than $1.82 million for the first 12 months it's open. For the following years that the temporary casino remains open, the city gets 5 percent of net income, but no less than $1.07 million.
Once the permanent casino opens, the city gets 1 percent of the adjusted casino and sports betting revenues during the first two years and after that, the yearly amount is equal to .5 percent of those annual totals.
The permanent casino will feature the following:
- 2,000 gaming seats
- An event and convention center
- Six restaurants
It is expected to create about 1,200 construction jobs, 1,000 full-time jobs in the casino and each full-time employee will make more than $37,000 according to the developer's submission to the IGC.
Gambling News states that following the 2019 expanded gaming law, IGB chose Rockford as a place for one of the new casinos. In February, the board granted preliminary approval.
The IGB issued a solicitation seeking proposals for a consultant to help analyze bids for the Waukegan and Chicago South Suburbs casinos. On May 25th, Christiansen Capital Advisors LLC was awarded a three-year, $750,000 contract. The contract could last for ten years with renewals. The New York-based company was one of the four bidders on this project.
Work on the permanent Hard Rock Casino site is expected to begin next year with an estimated completion date in 2023.
Hard Rock, which operates 240 venues in 69 different countries, including 12 casinos, is expected to bring in potential visitors well beyond the Illinois borders. The location of the permanent casino has tremendous access from Interstate 90 with nearly 70,000 cars passing daily.
See DataBid Blog titled: Hard Rock Casino Project in Rockford moves forward
