The Illinois Gaming Board has put a pause on the construction of Bally's Chicago casino in River West, a project worth $1.7 billion, after the revelation surfaced that an unauthorized and allegedly mob-affiliated waste hauler was on the job. The halt order came following inquiries by the Chicago Sun-Times, which brought to light the use of the subcontractor D&P Construction, a company once linked to reputed Chicago mob figures.
The temporary gaming location by Bally's at Medinah Temple in River North remains unaffected and is not under the influence of the stoppage order. A Bally's spokesperson mentioned in a statement to the Chicago Tribune, "Today we were informed by IGB that the contractors working on the Bally’s Chicago site were utilizing an unapproved vendor and were issued a stop work notice." "We appreciate the diligence and action of IGB. This is the process at work. We look forward to working with the IGB to eliminate the possibility of it happening again."
Historically, D&P has been under scrutiny for potential organized crime associations, dating back to casino developments in Rosemont where it was at the center of a gaming board disciplinary case. In bridge a gap of understanding, Bally's spokesperson Lauren Westerfield explained that a construction subcontractor had enlisted D&P. Westerfield signaled that a new plan is being hammered out to review and approve the process for vetting subcontractors, in collaboration with IGB, "We are redefining our process alongside the IGB to make sure everything that needs to be vetted in the future is handled correctly and that this doesn’t happen again," Westerfield told the Chicago Sun-Times.
