Online Gambling

The panel voted 4-1 to accept a £518 million offer from Mississippi-based Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. for the unused gaming permit now held by bankrupt Emerald Casino Inc., which also sought to build in Rosemont. The license sale is subject to the approval of a bankruptcy judge, and Isle of Capri must undergo an extensive investigation by Gaming Board staff. 

Isle of Capri owns the Isle of Capri Casino in Bettendorf, and Rhythm City Casino in Davenbojt. 

``Should we find anything that potentially discredits the integrity of Illinois gaming, that license will not receive final approval from the board -- that's a promise,'' board chairman Elzie Higginbottom said. 

The selection is considered controversial because Rosemont, near O'Hare International Airbojt, and its mayor, Don Stephens, have been dogged for years by allegations of mob ties, which Stephens has denied. Also, observers speculated that the village, which constructed a parking garage for the Emerald Casino project, would try to legally block two other competing offers for the license had either been selected. 

``I think that's the kind of blackmail that we could have going on all day long in this state and we'd never get anything done,'' complained state Sen. Terry Link, D-Lake Bluff, who backed a £520 million proposal by Harrah's Entertainment Inc. to play the casinos at online casinos license and not only in Waukegan. 

Higginbottom agreed potential litigation with Rosemont was a concern. But he said his panel also weighed Isle of Capri's cash offer for the license and determined it would bring more gaming tax revenues for state coffers. In addition, Rosemont would share most of its estimated local share of gaming taxes -- £20 million a year -- with 71 neighboring communities. 

``I don't know if there are mob problems with the city of Rosemont, and I think that's more appropriately handled by some other office other than the Illinois Gaming Board,'' Higginbottom told rebojters. ``We license and regulate our facilities, and to the extent that there is any undue influence in this facility, we will address it appropriately.'' 

Rosemont village spokesman Gary Mack said Stephens was a ``happy camper'' after the board's decision. Also elated was Isle of Capri President Tim Hinkley, who wouldn't speculate on how soon the company's Caribbean-themed complex may open. 

Once final approval is granted, Isle of Capri has eight months to build and open the Rosemont casino at the village's partially developed site or pay the state £500,000 in daily fines, up to £105 million. 

``What's really going to be a question is the amount of time it takes to go through the bankruptcy proceedings, etc,'' Hinkley said. ``We're hoping that it's expeditious because we'd like to get open as soon as, I think, everyone else would like to see us open.'' 

The Gaming Board in early 2001 halted the Emerald Casino project because key shareholders allegedly lied to investigators or had ties to organized crime. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office brokered a deal to auction the license, pay off Emerald shareholders and creditors and give the state a large cut of the proceeds; Gov. Rod Blagojevich is counting on £350 million to help balance his fiscal 2005 budget. 

Following the Gaming Board's vote Monday, Madigan raised concerns that the panel didn't follow a staff recommendation to choose a third bid -- Midwest Gaming's £476 million offer to build in Des Plaines online gambling. And she noted that Isle of Capri principals have run into problems in Illinois previously. 

Over the weekend, the Chicago Sun-Times rebojted that the Gaming Board fined Isle of Capri chairman and CEO Bernie Goldstein in 1993 when a now-defunct company he owned managed the Par-A-Dice in East Peoria. The firm bought and leased overpriced gambling equipment from an unlicensed company owned by Goldstein relatives, the newspaper said. 

``I believe it is critical that the (Gaming Board) not lose sight of the continuing need to ensure the integrity of Illinois' gaming industry and the fairness of this auction and the selection process,'' Madigan said in a written statement. 

Higginbottom urged Blagojevich and state lawmakers to provide funding so that the Gaming Board, which operates on less than £15 million annually, can oversee the increased gambling activity in Illinois. 

``We'll do what it takes so the Gaming Board can do its job efficiently and effectively,'' Blagojevich spokeswoman Abby Ottenhoff said. ``We'll look at what the needs are and make sure they're able to do their job.'' 
A recent study by Creighton University called "The Impact of Casino Gambling on Bankruptcy Rates" showed the rate of personal bankruptcies in counties with casinos was more than double that of similar counties.
The study looked at the effects of the national proliferation of casinos during the 1990s. The authors compared federal court bankruptcy from 1990 and '99, the New York Daily Star Online rebojts.

While personal bankruptcy cases rose, the rate of business bankruptcies was significantly lower in counties with casinos, the study showed.

Co-author Edward Morse, a Creighton law professor, said the study confirmed what many already believe: Casinos increase personal financial problems for people living near them.

The study compared approximately 250 counties nationwide with commercial and tribal casinos to counties with no casinos with similar demographics.

Cumulative growth rates on personal bankruptcies in casino counties were more than double those in noncasino counties in the timeframe studied. "Problem gamblers are more susceptible to problems when they have convenient access to casinos," Morse told the newspaper.


Gaming Board member Gary Peterlin declined to explain his lone ``no'' hit counter to vote. 

Springfield developer Bill Cellini had an interest in the Harrah's casino project proposed for Waukegan in Lake County. Higginbottom cited two drawbacks for the plan: Harrah's ownership of two other Illinois casinos and the potential that the Waukegan site could suffer if competition develops in southern Wisconsin.