Bally’s Unveils New 34-Story Hotel Tower For Permanent Chicago Casino

Bally’s Corporation has released new plans for a 500-room hotel in addition to securing financing to build the $1.7 billion permanent Chicago casino complex in River West. The $950 million financing deal was announced Friday.

The funding contract is with Gaming and Leisure Properties, a Pennsylvania-based real estate investment trust. This fulfills an $800 million funding gap that has loomed over the construction project.

Bally’s Chicago hotel tower will include a large pool spa, fitness center and sun deck, and rooftop restaurant bar

The 30-acre casino project at the former Tribune Publishing site has faced several challenges. In January, Bally’s was tasked with relocating the casino’s 400-room hotel tower after officials discovered construction could damage existing underground city infrastructure.

On Friday, Bally’s also released renderings for its redesigned 500-room hotel tower. Of course, the project has been moved from the north side of the casino site to the south.

The hotel tower will include a large pool spa, fitness center and sun deck, along with a rooftop restaurant bar to enjoy the Chicago skyline.

Bally’s Chicago Casino will feature its hotel tower on the southern end of the casino development nearest Ohio Street. The project is still pending approval of the Chicago Department of Planning & Development.

A spokesperson did not reveal the exact height of the 34-story hotel. However, image renderings from HKS show the building towering over the Chicago River.

“We’ve been working hard in the background to restore the full hotel tower for Bally’s Chicago Casino and absolutely intend to meet the September 2026 opening date as planned,” George Papanier, President of Bally’s Corporation, said in a statement.

“We are also happy to announce that Gaming and Leisure Properties has agreed to finance this entire development in a single phase to ultimately deliver a better project in a more efficient manner.”

Construction project calls for building all 500 hotel rooms at once instead of dividing the plan into phases

Additionally, Bally’s unveiled its plan Friday to build all 500 hotel rooms at once instead of splitting the project into phases. When completed, the project will generate approximately 3,000 construction jobs and 3,000 casino jobs.

“The improved site plan for Bally’s Chicago delivers all 500 hotel rooms upfront as part of a single-phase development plan, protects all essential infrastructure, and elevates the grandeur of our much-anticipated permanent casino development,” said Christopher Jewett, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Bally’s Corporation.

“We look forward to working with city officials to secure approval of our revised site plan.”

On July 5, Bally’s took possession of the former Tribune Publishing site at 777 W. Chicago Ave. and started preparing for demolition, according to the news release.

Last week, Brandenburg Industrial Service Company, the project’s demolition contractor, began preparing the site for demolition. Bally’s Casino has five demolition permits for the Freedom Center under review, one for each structure on the property.

Bally’s Chicago Casino development includes the 500-room hotel tower, 3,000-seat theater, six restaurants, cafes and a food hall, and a 2-acre public park. The casino will offer space for approximately 3,300 slots, 173 table games, and VIP gaming areas.

Bally’s Chicago Casino will become the largest casino in Illinois

Upon completion, Bally’s Chicago will become the largest casino in Illinois. The downtown Windy City casino and resort is scheduled to open in 2026.

The city estimated last year that the temporary casino at Chicago’s Medinah Temple would win $242.7 million from players in 2024. That’s about $20.22 million a month.

From January through May, the casino won $52.36 million, or about $10.47 million a month. In April, Bally’s Chicago ranked fourth in revenue among the state’s 15 casinos.

Admissions to Bally’s Chicago increased 11.6% to nearly 118,000 visitors, finishing second behind Rivers Casino Des Plaines. For the first quarter of 2024, the casino generated nearly $30.3 million in adjusted gross receipts. Plus, it reported more than $3 million in local tax revenue.

Bally’s reported $2.44 billion in total revenue for its 2023 operations, up 8.5% from 2022. The company’s casinos and iGaming platforms won more than $1.99 billion from gamblers. It’s an 8% year-over-year improvement