Tourism, Gaming, ONE Central development
Today’s 6:00pm town hall is being held in the Pritzker Auditorium of the Harold Washington Library,
This is the first of three casino town halls. Today’s focus will be the proposed Hard Rock at One Central. Remaining schedule:
April 6: Bally’s Tribune
Tribune Publishing Plant, 700 W. Chicago
April 7: Rivers 78
Isadore and Sadie Dorin Forum, 725 W. Roosevelt Road
Chicago’s Chief Engagement Officer, Tine Hone, is hosting the event and begins around 6:03pm, inviting Ald Tunney to make some opening remarks.
Tunney is chair of the casino committee and says they will provide their recommendations to City Council.
Ald Ervin is vice chair and says they hope to bring forth the best and brightest proposals.
Hone says there are categories of questions that the public cares about. She asks the audience to complete their question cards, and then the questions will be grouped into themes and then answered by the panel.
Hone: “This process is not intended to censor. This process is not intended to avoid tough questions.”
There will be 15 minutes toward the end for public comments that have not been addressed from question cards.
Hone asks audience members to refrain from sustained actions of interrupting the proceedings.
Hone says she understands there are strongly held opinions by folks in the audience and says that public engagement will be part of all decision making.
Samir Mayekar discusses Chicago’s COVID recovery and talks about the additional businesses who have invested in Chicago. He acknowledges the creative/arts, tourism, and hospitality aspects have not yet recovered.
Mayekar says there are many possibilities for the Hard Rock project to interact with Invest South/West, Obama Center, and Fulton Market developments. He says other competitor cities offer gaming, and it could be a significant part of Chicago’s recovery.
Mayekar says the City is already aware of concerns regarding congestion/traffic, safety, and equity.
Jennie Huang Bennett, Chicago’s CFO, discusses the lost revenues to Chicago for every year that the City does not offer gaming. She says the project would create at least 6800 jobs.
A video plays, suggesting that the project would create tens of thousands of jobs and has the potential to reinvigorate the City.
Hard Rock says they are the only one of the three finalists with a world-class brand.
Hard Rock says they are an entertainment company, not just a casino company, and that they would integrate and interact with their surrounding communities.
Another video plays, showing exterior/interior renderings of the casino, hotel, and other entertainment facilities, including a concert venue.
One more video plays, showing community members discussing the need for local jobs.
Question cards have been collected and sorted into categories. Hone says most of the questions were regarding ONE Central.
Hard Rock says they’ve planned their proposal to move forward even if ONE Central does not.
Hard Rock says that most traffic to similar resorts and facilities happens during the weekend or during non-rush hours. They say the location of this proposal is well served by mass transit.
Hard Rock says they’ve designed their project to maximize the distance between their buildings and surrounding residences.
A question asked if this was a tactic to try to persuade the Chicago Bears to stay at Soldier Field. Hard Rock did not comment on that.
There are complaints about destroying quality of life, bringing in noise and crime. These sentiments were supported by audience members.
At the same time, Hone says there are comments calling for jobs and economic opportunities.
Hard Rock is highlighting minority participation regarding who receives the jobs and contracts.
Hard Rock seems to be claiming their diversity at least rivals that of the two other candidates.
Hone asks that a 3-minute clock gets set for each of Hard Rock’s answers.
Local artists have asked how they can be part of this project, Hard Rock says they will meet with local artists.
Q: Does the proposal include plans to collaborate with disabled workers? A: Yes.
Hard Rock says they will be working closely with Chicago Police, including fundraising.
Hard Rock says the estimated time for construction is minimum of 30 months.
Hard Rock displays a slide to answer concerns about effects on local property values https://t.co/Oyu8LcqvXB
Live questions will begin now. Hone asks participants to limit their questions/comments to 1 minute.
A South Loop resident says the community doesn’t want ONE Central. Many audience members applaud in agreement. She says that none of the taxpayers don’t want this.
The SL resident wants Hard Rock to commit to moving forward with the casino proposal without the subsidy for ONE Central.
Hard Rock says the casino project can and will move forward without ONE Central.
Members of @ECCSC_chicago are present discuss violence in Chicago and their work in violence prevention. They are calling for greater economic opportunity and to be at the table in the decision-making process.
A local resident says the community does not want the casino, saying it will increase lawlessness in the area. He says law enforcement resources are already strained.
Multiple members of the public are calling for Hard Rock to stay true to their promises for community investment and employment opportunities for minorities.
One woman compares others’ concerns about city views versus her concerns about vacant stores and businesses. She says they have far much more to worry about than views.
A rep for Centers for New Horizons calls for greater accountability for Hard Rock and their actions.
A South Loop resident calls for greater transparency regarding how the City reviews proposals.
More info on Chicago casino proposals: https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/chicago-casino/home/rfp.html
A rep from Black Metropolis Convention & Tourism Council asks how the Hard Rock proposal will provide employment and training opportunities for minority youth.
Hone says the City is committed to bringing youth into the trades and for providing training opportunities, discussing a recent three-day event at McCormick Place.
Sam Toia, President & CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association, voices support for a Chicago casino but wants Hard Rock to commit to working with independent Chicago restaurants, not chains.
Hard Rock says there will be a combination of their own restaurants and local influence.
An architect and member of Bird Friendly Chicago asks how the building design will incorporate bird-friendly design practices. Hard Rock didn’t have a response with this but says will get the question-asker’s information.
A Chicago resident and tour guide says he understands the objections to a Chicago casino but says he can get on a bus in Chinatown now that goes to Indiana casinos. He asks if Hard Rock would have a retail component that would house Chicago businesses.
This concludes my coverage for @CHIdocumenters. #CHIDocumenters
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