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Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (GLPI) announced key milestones for its Bally’s Chicago casino resort on Sept. 22, 2025, including ongoing activities, upcoming goals, and project renderings. The casino is set to open in Q4 2026, transforming Chicago’s River West into a premier entertainment hub.
Spotlight on Bally’s: Operating 15 casinos and beyond
Bally’s Corporation is a well-established global casino and entertainment brand. The company owns and operates 15 casinos in the US, a golf course in New York, and a horse racetrack in Colorado. Bally’s also holds online sports betting licenses in 18 US states and employs over 10,000 people.
The company manages Bally’s Interactive International, formerly Gamesys Group, and operates Bally Bet, a top-tier sports betting platform, and Bally Bet Casino, a growing online casino platform. Bally’s land-based casinos feature over 15,000 slot machines, 550 table games, and more than 3,800 hotel rooms across its US properties.
The story and scale of Bally’s $1.19B casino in Chicago, Illinois
GLPI acquired the former Chicago Tribune site from Blue Owl on Sept. 11, 2024, for $250 million, marking a major step for Bally’s Chicago.
The $1.19 billion project includes a 178,000-square-foot casino with over 3,200 slots and 150 table games, a 500-room luxury hotel, dining, nightlife, event space, a riverwalk, and green areas. GLPI CEO Peter Carlino called it a future must-visit destination.
Bally’s Chicago casino completed milestones
Construction is underway, with the Chicago Tribune buildings demolished, caissons installed, trench excavation completed, and a concrete pad tied to the hotel core. Waterproofing membranes, caisson caps, and grade beams support vertical construction. Crane #1 is assembled for steel erection.
Current and upcoming milestones for downtown Chicago casino
Ongoing work includes concrete pours for foundation walls, columns, basement slab, grade beams, and elevator core walls. Other activities:
- Structural Work: Rebar and formwork for perimeter walls and hotel elevator core, structural wall along Chicago Avenue, and Level 2 deck pour.
- Utilities: Underground electrical and plumbing, including conduit placement and ComEd power cabling.
- Site Logistics: Inspections, backfilling, steel deliveries, and casino steel erection.
Future tasks for the Illinois casino include:
- Vertical concrete and steel construction for the hotel and casino
- Steel deliveries and staging for Cranes #2 and #3
- Curtain wall system fabrication
Here’s a look at renderings included in a Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. press release:
Inside GLPI: The REIT powering Bally’s casino empire
GLPI operates as a real estate investment trust, focusing on acquiring, financing, and managing property holdings. The company leases its properties to gaming operators under triple-net lease arrangements.
Gaming operators are responsible for maintaining these facilities, securing insurance for the leased properties, and covering taxes, utilities, and business expenses. In the case of Bally’s, GLPI owns the properties for Bally’s Kansas City Casino and Bally’s Shreveport Casino & Hotel.
