Frequently Asked Questions

Wind Creek was found preliminarily suitable for the south suburban casino license by the Illinois Gaming Board on December 8. The facility will open in 2023. We look forward to expanding our network of relationships in the Southland, and will work closely with leaders, organizations and residents to ensure that the benefits associated with this project are felt by the entire region.

East Hazel Crest and Homewood are strong and stable communities with visionary leadership. This partnership, and the prime, easy-to-access location creates a solid foundation for the casino and entertainment complex – one that will maximize revenue and bring sustained benefits to the entire south suburban region.

When completed, the facility will include:

• A nearly 70,000-square-foot casino floor with more than 1,300 slot machines and 56 gaming tables
• An entertainment center, customized with the Chicagoland region in mind – both in design and performers it will feature
• Three restaurants, two bars and a skyline lounge
• A 252-room luxury hotel with indoor pool and spa

AAA Diamond ratings for hotels reflect a combination of overall quality, range of facilities and level of amenities/services offered at the property. As we do at all our locations, Wind Creek will be dedicated to providing a first-class experience to guests – offering a variety of restaurants, an entertainment center, luxury hotel with spa and indoor pool, and a skyline lounge, in addition to the casino itself.

The casino itself is projected to create the equivalent of 800 full-time jobs when fully operational – careers ranging from maintenance and casino floor positions to hospitality and management roles. This estimate does not include temporary jobs created by the project‘s construction.

Wind Creek does everything in its power to engage local residents in the hiring process. For example, we‘ve already had preliminary conversations with South Suburban College, Prairie State College and Moraine Valley Community College about hosting job fairs to identify local applicants. We will also discuss with these institutions the availability and/or development of new training and educational programs that can lead to the certificates and degrees necessary to provide Wind Creek employees with opportunities for career advancement.

Wind Creek has a track record in each community where they operate of being a good neighbor and giving back in a number of philanthropic ways.

As part of our application in Illinois, we developed a memorandum of understanding with East Hazel Crest and Homewood to create the Southland Public Benefit Fund. All three parties will contribute to the Fund – $10 million coming from Wind Creek alone – and the Fund will distribute $150,000 per year for the first five years of operation to fund scholarships for disadvantaged students and provide health services for the south suburban region. Once the corpus of the fund has reached $20 million, the fund will distribute $1 million per year. We will partner with Moraine Valley Community College, South Suburban College, Prairie State College, the Ingalls Development Foundation and Advocate South Suburban hospital for this work.

Based on projections, we estimate a Year 1 net revenue of $155.6 million and Year 7 net revenue of $201.1 million.