Wind Creek Chicago Southland Casino in East Hazel Crest will open at 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 11, after receiving permission Friday morning from the Illinois Gaming Board.
The casino held two test runs, inviting guests to visit while IGB officials monitored operations on Nov. 6 and 7.
The casino has been under construction for more than two years and includes a parking garage in Homewood. East Hazel Crest and Homewood will split tax revenue from the new entertainment complex. Homewood Mayor Rich Hofeld said in 2019 that the two villages might receive as much as $3 million per year, with 45% going to Homewood and 55% to East Hazel Crest.
Homewood budget projections have been conservative, though, until officials see how much revenue the casino actually generates.
At a media tour on Thursday, Nov. 7, Hofeld recalled the long effort to bring a casino to the two villages. He and East Hazel Crest Mayor Tom Brown agreed in 2012 that a casino would be a good use for the mostly vacant land at 174th and Halsted Streets. The last of the previous buildings on the site, a Super 8 motel, was demolished in August 2015.
(Eric Crump/H-F Chronicle)
The mayors first joined lobbying efforts to convince the Illinois legislature to authorize a south suburban casino. Hofeld said they spoke at three legislative hearings.
State Rep. Bob Rita, D-Blue Island, was on hand, too. He took the lead on sheparding casino authorization through the legislature, a process that took about seven years. After the state approved the south suburban casino license, competition began among communities and casino developers to land the license.
Wind Creek and the East Hazel Crest/Homewood site won out over three other finalists including Lynwood, Calumet City and Matteson. Wind Creek is affiliated with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, based in Alabama.
“It’s like a dream come true,” he said. He believes the casino will be an economic engine for the region, keeping entertainment spending in the Southland instead of being spent at casinos in Indiana. “It’s a win-win for everyone.”
State Rep. Will Davis, D-Homewood, agreed with Rita’s assessment of the impact on the 30th District. He said the casino has already hired local workers and plans to add more.
“A lot of people from the community have been hired,” he said. “Those people that work locally are going to hopefully spend their money in the communities that they live in. Local businesses should have a great opportunity to do business here as well.”
He noted that minority participation in building the facility was about 35%.
In addition to the boost in jobs and opportunities for local businesses, the casino is expected to generate significant new revenue the state, for East Hazel Crest, Homewood and 42 other south suburban municipalities.
Security
Some H-F area residents remain concerned about the casino attracting criminal activity, as noted on local social media discussions.
Cathye Amos, Wind Creek executive director of marketing, said the company has extensive security measures in place. The ceiling of the gaming room is a forest of cameras monitoring activity.
“Our industry is highly regulated, and that’s a good thing because you want to know that when you come to play at a casino, that you’re in a safe environment,” she said.
Roger Kuehn, executive vice president and general manager, said the company has heard the concern about crime when opening casinos at other locations, and after nearby residents see how the casino operates for a while, the worries about crime fade.
(Eric Crump/H-F Chronicle)
“I’m most concerned about the safety of our patrons and our team members,” he said. “We internally have a strong presence in security,” adding that the facility has state of the art security technology, including weapons detection equipment. “If people don’t feel safe coming here, it’s a problem for me.”
Hofeld said three different Homewood police chiefs, including current Chief Denise McGrath, had signed off on the project. He said the location at the far northeast edge of town and the fact that the facility is mostly self-contained means impact on the village will be minimal.
At a 2019 town hall meeting in Homewood, former Police Chief Bill Alcott said he had consulted with police departments in other places with casinos and they reported that most problems are dealt with internally by casino security.
Traffic
Some local residents also worry the additional traffic the casino attracts will exacerbate congestion, especially on Halsted Street and on Homewood’s east-west arterial streets like 183rd Street.
Wind Creek commissioned a traffic study during the planning stages of the project and the engineering firm that did the study reported that while traffic would increase, about 75% of the traffic would travel north rather than through Homewood.
Kuehn noted that timing would help mitigate traffic congestion. Peak business for the casino tends to be evenings and weekends, avoiding daily rush hours.
Giving back
Some revenue from the casino will be used to endow a fund that will provide Prairie State College, South Suburban College and Moraine Valley Community College opportunities to give scholarships to disadvantaged students.
A portion of the fund will go to South Suburban and Ingalls hospitals to support community health programs.
Wind Creek will pitch in $10 million into the fund during the first five years to get the fund started. Homewood and East Hazel Crest will contribute 50% of their share of gaming revenue for four years. The fund is expected to become self-sustaining.
