Rivers touts its proposal as bankrolling “much-needed restoration and deferred maintenance” of Lakeside Center that McCormick Place officials would otherwise have difficulty funding. Some in the convention business don’t want a casino so close to the existing complex for fear it would distract conventioneers off the exhibition floor. It calls for an updated Arie Crown Theater and would provide direct access to the existing, more modern and better-utilized McCormick Place convention halls. The estimated cost for 2,600 gaming positions is $1.3 billion - $700 million less than the most expensive proposal.
Rivers Chicago McCormick: This proposed rebirth of the underutilized Lakeside Center could be the least expensive and the quickest to market in an estimated 12 months.
