Another major player entered the competition to build a riverboat casino in the Chicago area Wednesday, as Hyatt Hotels said it has joined a group trying to locate in Elgin.
Hyatt, the Chicago-based hotel operator owned by the wealthy Pritzker family, said it has agreed to form a joint venture with Nevada Landing Hotel and Casino Inc., which said that by the end of December it will submit to the state an application to operate a riverboat casino in downtown Elgin.
The addition of a deep-pockets partner to Nevada Landing`s proposal seemed to be a response to new competition in the area for the state`s last available riverboat license.
Last month, Mirage Resorts Inc., a major Las Vegas hotel and casino operator, said it reached an agreement with West Dundee to apply for the last license. At the same time, officials in Lake County expressed interest in pursuing a deal, although that effort has been cast in doubt by legislators`
opposition.
There is no guarantee that the Elgin, West Dundee or Lake County applicants will receive the last of the state`s 10 available riverboat licenses. Operators wanting to build in Moline and Sauget also are pursuing it.
Carrie Reckert, a spokeswoman for Hyatt, said the new Elgin proposal called for the building of a $40 million to $45 million riverboat casino and complex that would include an entertainment pavilion and restaurant. Mirage said it wants to build a $90 million complex up the river that includes a hotel and ice rink.
In a statement, Peter Simon, a partner with Nevada Landing, suggested that the addition of Hyatt strengthens his proposal.
”People know that when Hyatt is involved in a project, it works,” he said.
Elgin Mayor George Van Devoorde agreed.
”It should enhance our opportunity to get the license from the state,”
he said.
The deal with Hyatt would be through Hyatt Development Corp., an affiliate that operates casinos at Hyatt Hotels in Lake Tahoe, Puerto Rico and Aruba.
Elgin wants a riverboat as an anchor for its downtown area, which has suffered since retailers fled to suburban malls, and which the city wants to recast as an entertainment area. Before Mirage sought a deal with West Dundee, it wanted to compete with Nevada Landing for the right to operate in Elgin but was rebuffed by the City Council.
Five riverboats operate in Illinois, with four more under construction.
Meanwhile, stiff resistance to a proposal for another riverbaoat installation even further up the Fox may have strengthened the Elgin partnership`s hand.
Key Lake County state legislators said Wednesday in Springfield that they vehemently oppose a proposed riverboat casino near Lake Barrington, dealing a potentially fatal blow to the project.
More Top Picks Irlen Syndrome And Depth Perception Problems Explained
Sen.-elect Bill Peterson (R-Long Grove) and Rep.-elect Al Salvi (R-Wauconda), who will represent the area of the proposed casino site in the General Assembly beginning next month, pledged to fight the casino proposal.
In addition, state Rep. Robert Churchill (R-Lake Villa), chairman of the Lake County Republican Party and the deputy GOP leader of the Illinois House, said he is opposed to the plan.
The legislators, who made their comments in interviews Tuesday night and Wednesday in the Capitol, joined officials in the Barrington area and on the McHenry County Board in voicing their opposition to the project.
But Glenn Seidenfeld Jr., chairman of Fox River Partners, said his company won`t toss in its cards just yet.
Lake County Forest Preserve commissioners voted narrowly last month to let the private developers proceed with their plan to operate two riverboat casinos on the Fox River near Lake Barrington. The boats would dock in the Fox River Forest Preserve.
That preliminary approval gave the developers, the Fox River Preserve Limited Partnership, the go-ahead to apply for a state gaming license.
But Peterson said that with all the mounting opposition, the plan probably will not make it past that stage.
”Nobody wants it (the Lake Barrington casino),” Peterson said.
”What would you do if you were on the (Illinois Gaming Board) and you had three communities begging for it, and another where everyone, including the state legislators, were against it? I just don`t think it has good chances.” Peterson sent a letter to Barrington-area officials last week suggesting they encourage interested citizens to write gaming board members with their objections.
A gaming board official said Wednesday the mounting opposition may have an impact in the licensing process. Morton Friedman, gaming board administrator, said the commission takes local sentiment into consideration when awarding licenses.
”Clearly, the views of the community have an impact,” Friedman said. Opinions of local ”officials also have been considered (by the gaming board) in the past.”
Seidenfeld, however, said that state legislators ”are not the people we are seeking approval from. The (gaming board) has to give out the license and we meet all of the criteria.”
Seidenfeld`s group also has the strong backing of Lake County Forest Preserve District President Andrea Moore (R-Libertyville), who will become a member of the Illinois House next year. Moore supports the project for the revenue it would produce for the county, estimated to be about $10 million a year.
But opponents argued that gambling also causes problems for government to deal with, such as crime.
”There are better ways to raise money,” Churchill said.
Peterson and Salvi said they opposed the use of forest preserve property for a venture like riverboat casinos.
Moreover, several legislators have objected to the way in which the proposal was handled.
The Fox River Partners first approached Moore in September, according to Moore. The deed for the property was signed in early October.
In late November, forest preserve district commissioners were presented the casino proposal and were asked to approve it within a week.
Peterson and Salvi said they are upset that neither they nor local mayors were informed that the project was in the works.
”I`m distressed with the way it was handled,” Salvi said. ”The mayors should have been consulted.”
Salvi pledged to fight any attempts to get the legislature to award extra licenses.
But even if Fox River Partners win a license, they face an uphill battle against the new forest preserve district board. Incoming board members may be against the plan and could shift the narrow vote for the riverboat.
Even though County Board Chairman Robert Depke (R-Gurnee) favors the riverboat plan, the mounting opposition of leading county Republicans and leaders in the Lake Barrington area could hinder his lobbying efforts.
The Lake Barrington Village Board has voted to ask Lake County State`s Atty. Michael Waller and Illinois Atty. Gen. Roland Burris to file a lawsuit against the forest preserve district within 30 days to block the project.
Lake Barrington Mayor Nancy Smith said the lawsuit challenges the right of the Lake County Forest Perserve District to allow riverboat gambling on land designated as open space by the county.
Lake Barrington will file its own lawsuit by the end of the year if no action is taken by the state`s attorney or the attorney general, Smith said.
Mitch Hoften, chief of the civil division of the Lake County State`s Attorney`s Office, said he wants to study the issue before making a decision on filing a suit.
More Top Picks Celestron Nexstar Reviews
Lake Barrington trustees Tuesday also authorized James Bateman, village attorney, to file objections with the Illinois Gaming Board against the license application of the Fox River partnership.
Lake Barrington has standing to file an objection because 13 acres of the forest preserve property`s 245 acres are within its borders, Bateman said. The gaming board is expected to consider license applications after Jan. 1, Friedman said.