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A Look At Waukegan's Casino License Plans May 14, 2003

Eager to shed its image as a struggling rust-belt city, Waukegan wants a casino to provide the money needed for its turnaround.

Waukegan officials have a to-do list that includes neighborhood revitalization and lakefront improvements if it lands a casino, projected to generate $24 million a year for the city.

State lawmakers are considering expanding gambling in Illinois to raise money in the face of a $5 billion budget gap. To gain regional support for the casino that would be built where the mostly empty Lakehurst Mall stands, Waukegan plans to spread some of the $24 million to nearby towns and school districts.

Yet opponents contend casino profits wouldn't fuel a renaissance. They say gambling revenue would be eaten by the costs of crime and other social problems that follow casinos.

"I tend to believe the independent research that has been done, and it shows (a casino) will cost us money," said the Rev. Omar Logan, a gambling foe who heads Waukegan's First United Methodist Church.

Lakehurst, about a mile east of the Tri-State Tollway and Route 120, thrived in Lake County until Gurnee Mills opened in the early 1990s. In January, Waukegan officials said they wanted the state's 10th casino license for the mall land. The license, initially pegged for Rosemont, became available last year.

Another possibility is the creation of two additional gambling licenses, pitched by Democratic state Sen. Denny Jacobs of East Moline. Jacobs, chairman of the Senate's gaming committee, said he'll propose the licenses for Lake County and the South suburbs.

Waukegan Mayor Richard Hyde is optimistic about his city's chances to land a casino, whether through a new or existing license. No other Lake County towns have a casino plan. "In my heart, I feel 100 percent we're going to get it," Hyde said.

Waukegan's plan would funnel roughly $2.4 million of the annual casino tax revenue to city schools. About $14 million would go to the city for neighborhood rehabilitation and harbor development on Lake Michigan. And $2.8 million would be dished to Waukegan Township and the city's park district.

Another eight school districts and nine municipalities would get a cut of a combined $4.8 million annually if a Waukegan casino opened.

North Chicago, the Round Lake communities and Zion are among the towns that would receive gambling money. Warren Township High School in Gurnee, and schools in North Chicago and the Round Lake area also would benefit.

Ray Vukovich, Waukegan's governmental services director, said a casino would take two years to build. He said the economic benefits would arrive quickly. "Once you know funds are going to be coming in, you can make commitments to reinvesting in the community," Vukovich said.

In reality, opponents say, the picture isn't as bright. They contend gambling causes more problems than it solves. Too many players would come from poor areas of Waukegan and North Chicago, just a stone's throw from Lakehurst, Logan said. He expects Lake County would experience a rise in bankruptcies.

He cited University of Illinois Professor Earl Grinols' study on the effects of gambling on society as part of his anti-casino stance. Concerns about gambling at Lakehurst also have come from officials in the border village of Gurnee, and the Lake County Republican Party Central Committee.

The Republicans want legislators to pass a bill allowing a countywide referendum so all residents can vote on whether they want a casino.

In a non-binding advisory referendum last November, residents in five Lake County townships voted against casino gambling. The tally was 9,654 to 5,767 against gambling in Warren Township, which includes all of Gurnee and parts of Waukegan.

Hyde dismisses the township opinions and the call for a countywide casino referendum. He said Waukegan residents are the ones who matter most, noting they overwhelmingly re-elected him last month knowing his pro-casino stance.

Developers Richard Stein and Alan Ludwig have been trying to bring a casino to Waukegan since striking an agreement with the city in 1993. The men, operating as S/L Waukegan Limited Partnership, would enter a deal with a casino company to run the Lakehurst venture.

If built, a Waukegan casino would receive about 40 percent of its business from southeastern Wisconsin residents, a market report commissioned by S/L Waukegan predicts.

The fact that such a large portion of customers would come from Wisconsin should work in Waukegan's favor because it means a Waukegan casino wouldn't cut into gambling in Elgin, Joliet or Aurora, Vukovich said.

"You want to make sure it benefits the state to the fullest amount," he said.

While Gurnee officials have spoken against a casino, Vukovich said the village's hotels and restaurants would benefit.

He said a casino would be another entertainment option for 26 million annual visitors to Gurnee Mills and Six Flags Great America who are within a few miles of Lakehurst.

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