Matteson throws hat in ring for south suburban casino
Matteson became the latest south suburb Monday to offer a proposal for a casino, announcing a partnership with the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and gaming industry investor Rob Miller.
The town’s proposal calls for a casino, hotel and meeting complex at the northeast corner of Lincoln Highway and Harlem Avenue. The plan was to be brought before the village board for approval Monday night.
Matteson would compete for a new casino license in the south suburbs with a site proposed jointly by Homewood and East Hazel Crest and another in Lynwood. Other communities that might submit proposals to the Illinois Gaming Board before an end-of-the-month deadline are Crestwood, Calumet City and Country Club Hills.
The Gaming Board has the final say on who gets the license and could take a year to decide.
“I believe this project will be an asset not just to Matteson, but to the entire Southland Region,” said Matteson Village President Sheila Chalmers-Currin. “After interviewing multiple casino operators, we felt the team led by the Choctaw Nation provided the best combination of experience, vision, community engagement and a financially feasible plan.”
She said the proposal includes partnerships with minority-owned businesses and calls for the site to include an area dedicated to the multicultural history of the area.
The proposal calls for 2,000 gaming positions, a high-end restaurant and food hall, a 200-room hotel and 36,000 square feet for small conventions, concerts or similar events.
“There is no doubt that our proposed site is the absolute best location in southern Cook County,” Chalmers-Currin said. “It borders neighboring Will County and offers the total convenience of motorists through its unique access to I-57 and I-80.”
Others, however, might see the site as having drawbacks. It is close to Tinley Park, which is in line to get its own gambling enterprise in the form of a combined racetrack and casino. It’s also closer to the Joliet casinos than the other south suburban alternatives proposed so far.
In addition, the Homewood-East Hazel Crest and Lynwood sites are closer to the Indiana casinos and could be better positioned to intercept their business. Industry analysts see little growth in the casino market, except for sports gambling, and suspect new competition in the suburbs will siphon customers from existing operations.
The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma said it is the third-largest federally recognized Native American tribe, with 200,000 members. It operates 22 casinos, 10,000 slot machines, 33 restaurants, and more than 1,000 hotel rooms.
Miller, the other partner in the venture, is from Hinsdale and reports organizing more than $800 million in gaming industry investments over 20 years. He has held gaming licenses in Illinois and is an Army veteran.
Janie Dillard, Choctaw Nation’s chief executive in charge of its multiple businesses, said: “We’re honored with the chance to match our team’s experience with the community of Matteson and to create jobs and opportunity across the south suburbs.”