Hard Rock at Rockford is performing as superbly as experts predicted as the temporary casino enjoyed yet another record-breaking month. This July, the Illinois Gaming Board announced that Hard Rock: An Opening Act had welcomed 45,000 guests to its temporary location.
Hard Rock: An Opening Act has been open since it launched in November last year. The casino officially welcomed its first guests on November 10th with 2 restaurants, as well as a pop-up retail shopping area. The temporary casino boasts more than 8,500 square feet of gaming space capable of accommodating 635 slots and table games.
The Rockford Casino: Hard Rock Opening Act is open 24 hours a day, all through the week. The interim casino, which is situated inside the old Giovanni’s restaurant and convention center will likely operate for another full year before the permanent resort on the old Clock Tower resort has been completed.
The 45,000 guests that visited the casino this July is the highest attendance that the temporary casino had recorded since its launch. Because the casino has been thriving, the city of Rockford has been generating tax revenue from the casino and re-investing the funds back into the community.
Rockford mayor Tom McNamara confirmed that the temporary location has been performing as the city officials predicted and that the city has been using those funds to help the community. The tax revenue generated from the temporary casino is distributed across 5 locations.
As can be expected, Rockford gets the highest share of the tax revenue (70% of the tax revenue), followed by Winnebago County, which gets 20% of the tax revenue). Loves Park and Machesney Park both receive a 5% share of the total tax revenue generated by the casino. In the first 6 months of the year, Hard Rock has managed to generate more than $1 million in tax revenue.
Before the temporary casino was opened last year, residents had been demanding the construction of a new casino for more than 30 years. Without a casino present, citizens were forced to travel to neighbouring states including Wisconsin and Indiana to get their gambling fix. Now that there is a temporary facility available, the tax dollars that were previously escaping the state of Illinois are now benefiting the local community.
Currently, Illinois is home to 11 casinos namely DraftKings at Casino Queen, Harrah’s Joliet, Argosy Casino Alton, Grand Victoria Casino Elgin, Hollywood Casino Aurora, Harrah’s Metropolis, Jumer’s Casino & Hotel, Hollywood Casino Joliet, Par-A-Dice Casino, Rivers Casino, and now Hard Rock Rockford.
The first $1.5 million worth of taxes produced by the state was given to Rockford Promise, a non-profit organization that offers full-tuition scholarships to alumnae of Rockford Public School District 205. Rockford Promise has a mission to improve educational attainment while also providing financial incentives for individuals and business owners in Rockford.
According to Rockford Promise’s executive director, Kaylene Goh, the tax funds generated from the casino revenue have been instrumental in growing the NGO’s outreach. Rockford Promise launched in 2016 and has since awarded more than 300 scholarships to local students. From January to February 2022, the temporary casino in Rockford has generated close to $11.7 million in total adjusted gross receipts and is ranked 10th out of the city’s 11 casinos.
Apart from offering full-tuition scholarships to alumnae of the Rockford Public School District, the casino also works hand-in-hand with various other organizations. For instance, at the beginning of the year, the casino worked with Rockford Icehogs to provide a high-end viewing experience at Ice hogs home games.
Rockford Icehogs and Hard Rock signed a 5-year deal that led to the construction of a 56-seat VIP suite that will be located at BMO Harris bank. The suite will have luxury seating, a bar, a private buffet, and a space for mingling. This space will help to provide an enhanced gaming experience for Icehogs fans.
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Construction plans for the temporary Rockford casino proceed
The permanent Hard Rock Casino Rockford is set to welcome its first guests in the fall of 2023. In the meantime, the Opening Act, which is the 37,000 square foot temporary placeholder, will provide punters in Rockford with a temporary space to gamble before the temporary facility is completed. The Opening Act boasts more than 625 slots and electronic table games and is one of the most successful casinos so far, despite being the youngest.
The temporary casino is expected to cost approximately $310 million and will see the construction of 65,000 square feet of entertainment. Once the permanent location has been constructed, Hard Rock Rockford will be the biggest casino in the state by square footage. The temporary space will also contain a 1,600-seat entertainment and concert venue dubbed Hard Rock Love that will be perfect for live entertainment and concerts.
The temporary facility will be situated off the I-90 exit ramp at 7801 State Street. Not too long ago, the owners of the Hard Rock Rockford were given the green light by the Illinois Gaming board to start foundation and utilities work for the resort at the old Clock Tower. This permit covers the commencement of site work only.
That means that the Gaming Board still has a lot of sanctions to give that will allow the construction of the permanent facility or kick-off. The casino project worth $310 million is expected to provide at least 1200 jobs as the permanent construction commences.
Final Thoughts
The permanent Hard Rock facility is targeting this spring for its groundbreaking. At present, locals can visit the temporary facility, which will remain operational until the permanent stop welcomes its first punters. The temporary facility already has more than 600 slot machines and electronic games but there are no table games at present.
Experts predict that the permanent casino will take close to 2 years to complete. This project has been in the works since October 2019 when city leaders voted to approve the project. The permanent facility would have been completed by now. However, the process was pushed back for months owing to the pandemic.
