Illinois Gaming Board met Oct. 13.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
The Illinois Gaming Board convened for a Special Meeting at 9:00 A.M. On September 17, 2021, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker issued a statewide disaster proclamation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Pursuant to Section 7(e) of the Open Meetings Act, the Board determined it was not practical or prudent, nor was it feasible, to hold an in person meeting due to the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic. Accordingly, the Board held the meeting through electronic means. The meeting was accessible on the morning of October 13, 2021, via livestream at: https://multimedia.illinois.gov/igb/igb live.html
A roll call was taken. The following Board members were present: Chairman Charles Schmadeke, Member Marc Bell, Member Anthony Garcia and Member Dionne Hayden. Four members of the Board being present, a quorum was satisfied.
BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS
Chairman Schmadeke began by welcoming new Board Member, Marc Bell, to the Illinois Gaming Board. Member Bell thanked the Chairman for the warm welcome and noted that he looks forward to helping the Board maintain the integrity of gaming in the State of Illinois.
ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT
Administrator Fruchter began his report by welcoming Member Marc Bell to the Illinois Gaming Board and thanked former Member Ruben Ramirez for his dedication and service to the Board. The Administrator went on to explain that the purpose of the special meeting was devoted solely to the statutorily required competitive bidding process as it relates to the new Owners license applicants for the Waukegan casino and South Suburban Cook County casino. The Administrator then provided a detailed summary of the statutory framework applicable to the selection process.
CASINO OWNERS LICENSE APPLICANT PRESENTATIONS
▪ Lakeside Casino, LLC d/b/a North Point Casino (Waukegan License)
The Board entertained a presentation from Lakeside Casino, LLC d/b/a North Point Casino, an applicant for the Owners license in Waukegan. Upon the conclusion of the presentation, the Board and the Administrator asked the applicant specific questions related to the information that was presented.
▪ Full House Resorts, Inc. d/b/a American Place (Waukegan License)
The Board entertained a presentation from Full House Resorts, Inc. d/b/a American Place, an applicant for the Owners license in Waukegan. Upon the conclusion of the presentation, the Board and the Administrator asked the applicant specific questions related to the information that was presented.
At approximately 11:56 A.M., the Board took a recess for a lunch break. At 12:45 P.M., the Board returned from its recess and another roll call was taken. The following Board members were present: Chairman Charles Schmadeke, Member Marc Bell, Member Anthony Garcia and Member Dionne Hayden. Four members of the Board being present, a quorum was satisfied.
▪ Wind Creek IL LLC (South Suburban License)
Next, the Board entertained a presentation from Wind Creek IL LLC, an applicant for the Owners license in South Suburban Cook County. Upon the conclusion of the presentation, the Board and the Administrator asked the applicant specific questions related to the information that was presented.
▪ Southland LIVE, LLC d/b/a Southland LIVE (South Suburban License)
The Board entertained a presentation from Southland LIVE, LLC d/b/a Southland LIVE, an applicant for the Owners license in South Suburban Cook County. Upon the conclusion of the presentation, the Board and the Administrator asked the applicant specific questions related to the information that was presented.
▪ South Suburban Development, LLC (South Suburban License)
The Board entertained a presentation from South Suburban Development, LLC, an applicant for the Owners license in South Suburban Cook County. Upon the conclusion of the presentation, the Board and the Administrator asked the applicant specific questions related to the information that was presented.
▪ Southland Ho-Chunk Entertainment, LLC (South Suburban License)
The Board entertained a presentation from Southland Ho-Chunk Entertainment, LLC, an applicant for the Owners license in South Suburban Cook County. Upon the conclusion of the presentation, the Board and the Administrator asked the applicant specific questions related to the information that was presented.
At approximately 4:55 P.M., Member Garcia moved that the Board go into closed session pursuant to Section 2(c), paragraph (36) of the Open Meetings Act and Section 6(d) of the Illinois Gambling Act to discuss personal, commercial, financial, or other information obtained from any source that is privileged, proprietary, confidential, or a trade secret; or (ii) information specifically exempted from the disclosure by federal or State law as it relates to pending Owners license applications. Member Bell seconded the motion. The motion passed by unanimous vote. Thereafter, the Board held its closed session meeting through electronic means, the minutes of which are separately recorded. The Board’s closed session meeting was not accessible via livestream at https://multimedia.illinois.gov/igb/igb-live.html.
At approximately 5:45 P.M., the Board reconvened into open session. Chairman Schmadeke called the meeting to order and another roll call was taken. The following Board members were present: Chairman Charles Schmadeke, Member Marc Bell, Member Anthony Garcia and Member Dionne Hayden. Four members of the Board being present, a quorum was satisfied.
The Administrator thanked all the applicants for their presentations and noted that since there are only two Waukegan applicants remaining, there was no statutory need to reduce the number of applicants for the Waukegan casino Owners license to less than three. With respect to the four South Suburban applicants, the Administrator announced that the Board was not prepared to reduce the number of applicants to less than three at this meeting.
ADJOURN
The Board voted unanimously to adjourn the meeting.
https://www.igb.illinois.gov/FilesBoardMeeting/20211013CombinedMinutes.pdf
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