Chicago Mayor issued an online survey about the upcoming casino for the city

Illinois governor names two members for the state Gaming Board as gambling expansion begins

The five-member board meets Thursday for the first time since Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the gambling legislation.
2019-07-31
Reading time 3:55 min
Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday named Springfield attorney Charles Schmadeke as the Illinois Gaming Board’s new chairman and proposed Boeing senior counsel Anthony Garcia to fill the other empty seat. Both appointments must be confirmed by the state Senate. In Chicago, Mayor Lori Lightfoot's office posted an 11-question online survey on the location, amenities and potential social problems of a new casino, and results will be released mid-August.

A month after signing legislation authorizing a massive expansion of gambling in Illinois, Governor J.B. Pritzker has filled two vacancies on the board charged with awarding licenses for new casinos, including one in Chicago, and overseeing the rollout of legalized sports betting.

Pritzker on Monday named Springfield attorney Charles Schmadeke as the Illinois Gaming Board’s new chairman and tapped Boeing senior counsel Anthony Garcia to fill the other empty seat. The five-member board meets Thursday for the first time since Pritzker signed the gambling legislation, which also authorizes new casinos in Waukegan, the south suburbs and three other locations, and the addition of slot machines and table games at horse tracks.

Schmadeke is the partner-in-charge at law firm Hinshaw & Culbertson’s Springfield office, Chicago Tribune reported. He was general counsel in then-Illinois Comptroller Dan Hynes’ office until 2002. Hynes is now one of Pritzker’s four deputy governors. Before joining the comptroller’s office, Schmadeke was chief of the general law bureau in the Illinois attorney general’s office.

At Boeing, Garcia oversees internal investigations involving alleged violations of anti-corruption laws, according to an announcement from the governor’s office. A Deerfield resident, his resume also includes stints as an assistant U.S. attorney in Chicago and an intelligence analyst for the CIA.

Both appointments must be confirmed by the state Senate. Under state law, at least one member of the Gaming Board must have law enforcement and criminal investigation experience, one must be a licensed attorney in Illinois and one must be a certified public accountant. The three sitting members, all from Cook County, cover those requirements.

Board members and their immediate family members are prohibited from having any financial interest in gambling operations. The positions pay $300 per meeting, plus expenses. The longest-tenured member is Steve Dolins, a CPA and managing partner of The Dolins Group in north suburban Northbrook. Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner appointed Dolins in May 2016 for a term that expires June 30 of next year.

The law enforcement representative on the board is Chicago police Sgt. Ruben Ramirez, whom Pritzker appointed in March for a term that also ends next year. Ramirez, whose Chicago Police Department salary is $111,474, according to city records, is a 28-year veteran who is a training group supervisor with the department’s bureau of organized crime. His state economic disclosure, filed March 20, shows no financial interests outside his Police Department job.

Dionne Hayden, an attorney, was appointed by Pritzker in May and reappointed last month for a term expiring in 2022. Hayden is currently assistant vice president of employee relations at CNA Insurance Co. and previously was senior legal counsel at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty. Those are the only financial interests reflected on her state economic disclosure, filed April 29. Pritzker’s appointments of Ramirez and Hayden also need to be confirmed by the Senate.

As the first step toward awarding a license for a Chicago casino, the gambling regulator awarded a $90,000 contract to Las Vegas-based Union Gaming Analytics to conduct a feasibility study. Mayor Lori Lightfoot has suggested five potential sites for the consultant to evaluate, all on the South and West sides, though she later said she wouldn’t rule out a downtown location. The report is due August 12.

Online survey in Chicago

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot's office issued an 11-question online survey Friday, soliciting feedback on where the Chicago casino should go, what amenities it should have and what social problems are anticipated after it opens.

"To learn more about what Chicagoans want to see in a new casino, today we are launching a survey that will give our residents a voice in informing how this development can drive the maximum benefit for all communities," Lightfoot said, as reported by Times of Northwest Indiana.

The survey, posted at chicago.gov/casinosurvey, is intended only for Chicago residents. However, a zip code is the sole identifying information required to complete the survey, and the final option on the zip code pull-down menu allows anyone living anywhere, including Northwest Indiana, to fill it out.

Lightfoot said the initial survey results will be released mid-August in tandem with a Chicago casino financial feasibility report that's evaluating five potential casino sites for the Illinois Gaming Board. Two of the sites are close to Northwest Indiana casinos: The Harborside development at 111th Street and the Bishop Ford Expressway, and the former U.S. Steel South Works at 80th Street and Lake Shore Drive.

The others are near the Chicago White Sox ballpark at Pershing Road and State Street, the former Michael Reese Hospital at 31st Street and Cottage Grove Avenue, and on the west side at Roosevelt Road and Kostner Avenue.

Lightfoot said before any casino placement decision is made, city officials also will lead a series of community forums for residents to provide input on the location, development and operation of the Chicago casino. "While the prospect of a new casino holds tremendous potential for generating new revenues and stimulating economic opportunity for Chicago, we are committed to a transparent process for ensuring all voices can be heard as the city moves forward on this historic project," Lightfoot said.

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