Statement Opposing Hard Rock International’s Casino Proposal at ONE Central from Alderman Pat Dowell

After carefully reviewing Hard Rock International’s casino proposal and gathering an enormous amount of feedback from neighboring constituents, I cannot support building a Chicago casino at ONE Central.

I fully support building a casino in Chicago. I have been a champion of numerous large-scale, impactful developments throughout my time as Alderman of the 3rd Ward and as a former City planner. I believe a casino will support the growth and prosperity of the City by adding a sought-after destination amenity to Chicago’s already world-class tourism and hospitality offerings. And as the Chairman of the City Council Committee on the Budget and Government Operations, I know first-hand how vital a casino is to the City’s bottom line. The revenues from a Chicago casino will go a long way towards ensuring we meet our obligations to the Police and Fire pension funds. This is an essential commitment to Chicago’s first responders that we must fulfill.

But the devil is in the details, and it is a delicate balance weighing the positive aspects of each casino proposal against the needs and wishes of the existing community. The Hard Rock Casino at ONE Central would be dropped into an existing, well-established family community in the Prairie District of Chicago’s South Loop. Because of that, I have concerns about the density of the Hard Rock Casino proposal. I have concerns about the public safety impacts of the proposal. I have concerns about the financials of the proposal, and I have concerns about the infrastructure needs of the proposal. And even though the developer of ONE Central has made assurances that the Hard Rock Casino project is entirely separate from ONE Central, the community and I are having a very difficult time separating the two interrelated projects.

A casino in Chicago is needed and warranted. Just not at ONE Central. I look forward to continuing to work with Mayor Lightfoot, the other casino bidders, my residents, and citywide stakeholders to find a place to fulfill the City’s longstanding goal of building a new casino in Chicago.