Jockeys after a race at Hawthorne Race Course in Stickney on Dec. 16, 2022.
In the meantime, other ventures have gotten the go-ahead for new casinos in Chicago, Waukegan, East Hazel Crest and Danville. Temporary casinos were established in Waukegan and Rockford. But there’s still no casino at Hawthorne. However, since granting preliminary suitability and demolition approval to Hawthorne in 2020, the gaming board has not received any subsequent construction requests from the track.
As a family-owned business with 160-some shareholders, Hawthorne had to restructure to make the gaming board vetting process easier. Officials didn’t want to partner with a casino company because they want racing to be an integral part of the new operation, Schultz said. Casino gambling at Hawthorne would pay a share of adjusted gross receipts to purses, or prize money, for horse races. If the casino takes in $200 million, the horsemen expect that to generate some $30 million extra in purse money, more than doubling the current handle.