Bally's Halts Parts of Chicago Casino Build as Video Gambling Fight Escalates

Bally's is pulling back on parts of its $1.7 billion casino project in River West, telling city officials over the weekend that construction will pause on the hotel, event center and several restaurants as the company fights Chicago over its expansion of video gambling terminals.

The company notified the Chicago Community Builders Collective on Saturday that it was, in its words, "resetting the pace" of work at the 560 W. Grand Ave. site. By Monday, work was still visible on parts of the project, and Bally's had not said publicly which portions had actually stopped or for how long.

The move follows months of tension between Bally's and City Council over legislation approved last year as part of the 2026 city budget that legalized video gambling terminals in Chicago. Mayor Brandon Johnson, then-city Chief Financial Officer Jill Jaworski and Bally's itself all objected to the plan before it passed. Bally's argues that letting video gambling terminals spread across the city violates its host community agreement, which promised the company the city's "sole casino license."

"The potential for an uncontrolled proliferation of video gambling terminals (VGTs) is in breach of the City's commitment not to expand gaming in the Host Community Agreement (HCA) and creates uncertainty that could be harmful for Bally's Chicago prospects," a Bally's spokesperson said in a statement over the weekend.

Bally's has estimated that video gambling terminals could cost roughly $260 million in annual tax revenue across the industry, including about $70 million for the city. Casino tax revenue is earmarked to help cover Chicago's police and fire pension payments, one of the reasons city officials pushed to land a casino operator in the first place.

By June, the Illinois Gaming Board had approved applications for six Chicago establishments to install video gaming machines, all still waiting on city sign-off, with another 286 establishments in the pipeline. Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) has pointed to estimates that the city could bring in more than $8 million by allowing the machines to operate.

"Research has shown that we can generate over $8 million if we allow VGTs here in the city of Chicago, and it is well within our right to do that," Lopez said.

Lopez did not take the construction pause quietly. He has drafted a letter to the city's corporation counsel asking for timelines and action items needed to revoke the city's casino agreement with Bally's, calling the pause a "self-induced construction default."

"I am very disturbed to learn that Bally's is choosing to play games with our workforce and our entire casino development project," Lopez said.

About 1,500 union tradespeople working the site could be affected by the slowdown, according to Bally's own statement. The company insists its target of opening the casino floor in early 2027 has not changed and says it "intends to fully honor its commitments under the Host Community Agreement." It has not explained how it plans to meet that deadline while halting work on the hotel, event center and restaurants that count toward the agreement's opening requirements. Under the terms of that agreement, at least 75 percent of the gaming area, parking, initial hotel rooms and other amenities need to be finished to open, including five food and beverage outlets and a Riverwalk section that is at least 75 percent complete.

City officials say they were caught off guard. The Mayor's Office declined to comment Monday. The city's Department of Law said it learned about the pause through news reports and never received formal notice from Bally's.

Ald. Walter Burnett (27th), whose ward includes the casino site, said he found out about the pause Saturday while hosting his ward's back-to-school picnic. Burnett opposed the video gambling expansion from the start and tried, unsuccessfully, to ban the machines in his ward and several others.

"We haven't really thought about the repercussions of making this type of deal, even though it has been loudly broadcast that this is a bad deal for the city and for all the operating partners," Burnett said. "We keep saying that we want to be a pro-business city and continue to help invite more businesses in. We can't sign a contract and then renege on it before the contract is fully executed... so I'm very disappointed."

Burnett said he has also heard that Bally's $4 million annual community benefits payment, due in September, may not arrive on schedule. Under the host agreement, $2 million of that payment is set aside specifically for the 27th Ward. The city has collected the payments in past years but has not yet allocated this year's funds. Burnett said he had planned to use the money for a grant program to help businesses disrupted by casino construction and to boost security near the site.

Bally's said in its statement that it will keep assessing its options and hopes for more talks with the mayor's office and City Council. No meeting has been scheduled publicly between the two sides.

The hotel, event center and restaurant buildout remain paused as September approaches, when Bally's $4 million community benefits payment is due and the city is expected to begin acting on the backlog of video gaming terminal applications already approved by the state.