Full House Resorts Stakes $40 Million on Illinois Casino Proposal

As a revenue generation exercise aimed at supporting critical funding in the State of Illinois local lawmakers finally voted to allow the development of six casinos in the state. Mayor Lori Lightfoot has been an outspoken supporter of a Chicago casino calling it an important source for income and job creation that has been overlooked for nearly 30 years.

The mayor went on record saying that a casino would:

“… bring much-needed relief for our police and fire pension funds, while unlocking significant economic opportunity for our communities and capital funding for our entire state.”

After nearly three decades of sitting on the “maybe” shelf the time has come for Chicago to get its first casino and casino developer, Full House Resorts, are doing their level best to ensure they land the contract.

 Shoring Up Their Position

The Las Vegas-based casino and resort developer is already proudly associated with several premier and themed gambling destinations across the USA, including the stately Rising Star Casino Resort in India and the Western-themed Bronco Billy Casino in Colorado.

Full House Resorts are so dedicated to securing the contract to build and operate the proposed American Place casino in Waukegan, Illinois that they announced an underwritten public offering of 6,015,000 shares. The share price is fixed at $6.65 per unit for these initial shares, however, the company has agreed to part with an additional 902,250 shares at the same price given there is enough demand to secure the entire lot.

The company expects to rake in approximately $40 million from the initial share sale and an additional $6 million from the second round of shares.

The Final Three Contenders

The decision to proceed with the development of a casino in Waukegan has been a lengthy process with successful bids from Full House Resorts, North Point Casino and Midwest Gaming receiving approval as far back as 2019.

Full House Resorts believe that their history of running successful casinos and resorts coupled with provable access to more than $40 million in cash will put them a step ahead of their competitors.

Despite their confidence, Full House Resorts will be facing tough competition from North Point Casino who are partners with Warner Gaming.

Bill Warner, the CEO of Warner Gaming, was bullish about their position saying:

“North Point Casino is fully capitalised and is ready to build a locally-focused world-class entertainment destination in Waukegan right now.”

With the issue of funding out of the way, it will come down to which company can convince the Gaming Board that they have the right vision and passion to create a noteworthy casino and resort, with more than 30 years of pent up expectation behind the project it will have to be something special to win over the adjudicators.