Bingo and Lottery

In 1971, the Bingo games were legalized. On July 1, 1974, the Illinois lottery launched. It was launched after Gov. Dan Walker signed and legislation passed by the Illinois General assembly. Its lottery released its first tickets and distributed them to 7000 retailers statewide. Also, it was marketed as the “cure-all for state education funding for K to 12 education”. But then funding decreased and failed to keep pace due to the General Assembly. So as to put funds into the state’s General Fund. But extra revenue is designated for education. Likewise, other amounts of money of general funding were reallocated for other purposes. Because the lottery simply proceeds were traded for other revenue sources. In 1977, the funding for K to 12 education dropped and forced the local Gov to bridge the gap.

In 1982, the Illinois Pick3 game was launched. And in 1984, Illinois Pick4 and Lotto games were launched. It was launched by Lottery and fast pick feature. By these features, the terminal randomly selects numbers as an additional feature. 

In 1986, the charitable games of chance were approved. It was for non-profit organizations.

Riverboat Gambling

In February 1990, riverboat gambling was legalized in Illinois. It is the second state in the nation that legally allows riverboat gambling. A total of 10 licenses were authorized. Boats were required to cruise a river while gambling occurred. 

Then on September 11, 1991, the first riverboat began its operation in Aton. It required reservations and admission were charged. Then there was a fee for general parking. There were long lines waiting to board. Everyone boards at the evening sessions due to the requirement of boats to cruise.

On May 21, 1999, Gov. George Ryan signs the Riverboat gambling act. The act states that there is no longer a requirement for the boats to cruise the river. As soon as the action started, all riverboats ceased cruising. And then it became de facto land-based, dockside casinos.

Later in the year 2003, Pick ‘n Play was launched by the lottery. That is new on the web game which combines both instant and online games. 

In 2005, the Illinois Gaming Board revoked the license of the Emerald Casino. As there were raised questions about reputed organized crime connections of some parties to the deal. It was the first priority and necessity in reallocating the license. And also getting a casino in operation, in order to generate tax revenue for state and local governments. Finally, in August 2011, The Illinois Supreme court ruled out a decision. It said that the legislation authorizing video gaming did not violate the state’s “single subject” clause. It removed the legal hurdles by enactment.

Modern Online Gambling in 2022

Nowadays online gambling is taking place in Illinois. Illinois has online sportsbooks like BetRivers, DraftKings, FanDuel, PointsBet, Barstool, and Caesars. It includes Hollywood casinos in Aurora and Joliet and also Grand Victoria Casino. 

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St Louis Casinos

For St Louis residents on the Illinois side there is the Draft Kings Casino Queen discussed in more detail here. For those who wish to stay in Missouri the Lumière Place Casino Hotel should satisfy your  casino gaming requirements. Located just near the arch this casino offers over 1,300 slots, video slots, and video poker machines. You’ll find classics, state of the art games and there are huge progressive jackpots to be won.

Take a trip to Chicago

Online casino gaming

There is no legalised online casino gaming in the State of Illinois (at least not yet anyway). However, you can play casino sweepstakes online.  It is also possible to play with unregulated casino sites located overseas. This means that you may not have great protection from licensing and regulatory bodies. However, it is still a competitive market so brands wishing to keep players loyal will pay out winnings quickly. This will help them avoid becoming blacklisted on casino review sites.

Thinking of playing a cash poker game?

Think again! It is actually illegal in Saint Louis and in the rest of Illinois. Classed as a misdemeanour it is still punishable by up to 2 years in prison. Online sports betting is now legal via Draft Kings so perhaps take a punt on a hockey game instead to avoid possible prosecution.

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The Casino Queen Riverboat rebrand will be the first time a casino within the U.S. has carried the DraftKings’ name. They previously only provided mobile and retail sports betting for casino operators. Now, they hope to attract bettors from across the river in Missouri, where sports wagering isn’t yet legal.

The Casino Queen 

Casino Queen is owned by realty investment firm Gaming and Leisure Properties with the operations owned by its casino employees. They have managed to achieve this structure since the sale of the business to an Employee Stock Ownership Plan for $170m in 2013. This was the first deal of its kind in the United States.

The facility itself is a 38,000-square-foot casino boat with four restaurants, a waterfront hotel, and an RV Park. The property has views of the St. Louis skyline including the Arch across the Mississippi.

DraftKings

Despite the name change, DraftKings doesn’t plan on making any major changes to the property’s operations. CQ Holdings, the holding company for Casino Queen have announced that Terry Hanger as their president. Terry will succeed Jeff Watson, who was in the role since 2012 and recently resigned to become an associate judge on Illinois’ 20th Judicial Circuit.

In the new role, Hanger is liable for all daily operations including regulatory and labour relations. With 18 years of experience at Casino Queen, Hanger previously was a top dog before the promotion. In 2000 he joined the organisation as their director of knowledge technology and has held various roles there. Originally from Bellville, Hanger has previously held positions at Emerson, Walgreens Co. and BJC HealthCare.

CQ Holdings had estimated revenue of $150.4 million in 2017 and has about 800 employees, per Business Journal research. In their recent regulatory filling, DraftKings claimed that they have pencilled a multiyear deal with Casino Queen.DraftKings went public earlier this year and in May reported revenue of $88.5 million within the first three months of 2020. This was a net loss of $68.7 million from previous results.

Betting Legislation Changes

The partnership between Casino Queen and DraftKings comes hot off the heels of a change in Sports betting legislation that was passed by JB Pritzker in the Illinois Gov in 2019.

Others that followed include Argosy Casino Alton in Alton who opened a sportsbook in March 2019 and Collinsville horse track in Fairmount Park also has plans to launch a sports wagering operation in other sports betting operations launching this year.

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This comes after Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation to permit gambling operations at horse racetracks, something which Fairmount Park’s leadership had long sought to achieve to bring in further revenue.

This puts them in prime position to become the first “racino” in Southern Illinois. offering live racing, sports wagering, full casino gaming as well as state of the art restaurants and bars all situated at the venue. 

Partnership with FanDuel 

To achieve these goals they have partnered with gaming company FanDuel. It is believed their official name will be “Fairmount Park, Inc. FanDuel Sportsbook and racing.”

Fairmount Park is not the only casino within the Metro East gambling with sports wagering operations. Sports betting operator DraftKings has launched a sportsbook at East St. Louis-based Casino Queen. Argosy Casino Alton in Alton opened the Metro East’s first sportsbook in March this year.

This latest sports betting deal for FanDuel Sportsbook will put them on a more even playing field with their competitors DraftKings Sportsbook and BetRivers.

Fairmount is located to the east of St. Louis which is a great attraction for local players as in-person registration is a requirement for the first 18 months.

Par-A-Dice, on the other hand, located right in the middle of the state is hours away from the metropolitan districts of Chicago and St. Louis.

After sports betting launched in March, Gov JB Pritzker suspended the in-person requirement in June because casinos were closed. There have been variations to the rule since then but the rule currently still stands. Although sports betting registration does go back to in-person registration, DraftKings Sportsbook may hold the edge over FanDuel in terms of location.

DraftKings at Casino Queen sits just over the Missouri-Illinois border so sports bettors would only need to drive 15 minutes to get there.

Allowing remote registration, especially for the NFL betting season, has led to a far stronger launch period than expected for Illinois with the state’s sportsbooks taking $139.8 million in August. This was up significantly from the $52.5 million figure in July.

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The arrival of The Casino Queen changed much of that. While many regions have turned to casinos to reinvigorate their slow economies, it’s true to say that no other city has become so quickly reliant on casino revenue than East St Louis. After only five years of operation, the Casino Queen became the second largest employer in East St. Louis bringing 1,200 jobs to the city.

As casino gambling has spread across the country, it is yet to be seen what the real economic benefits on communities really are.

The advantageous effects of casino gambling on the economy are clearly evident. Take Gulfport in Mississippi for example where 62 per cent of the 18,000 jobs created since 1990 have been at casinos and in Joliet, Illinois where two riverboat casinos pay some of the highest property tax in the city. East St. Louis continues to be one of the poorest cities within the US and boarded-up buildings still line many streets. Although half the casino’s jobs are taken up by city residents, unemployment remains above 10 per cent.

The direct impact of the casino has started to reverse its long decline, however. Repairs have been made to broken sewers are streets have been saved with the derelict building also demolished.
Changes made to public funds have meant the police force has doubled with officers receiving full medical coverage. Firefighters also received $1 million in new equipment.
Casino and police officials note that no serious crimes have occurred in or near the casino since the influx of visitors to the casino. This has created a knock-on effect with many other businesses looking to develop in East St. Louis.

35% Of the 600 city residents who were hired when the Casino Queen opened came off welfare. Based on the mortgage applications completed for workers, casino officials estimated that casino jobs created around 200 homeowners on its opening. Due to existing poor housing stock and poor schooling in East St. Louis, many of the casino employees have moved away to other suburbs.
Apart from the casino revenue, $7 million that the casino paid as part of the deal to buy its 95-acre riverfront property was used to finance the development of new houses. Sixty new homes were initially been built, and 200 more mixed-income houses soon followed.

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With most doors of society still closed to them, a lot of very talented African Americans turned to making music for a living.

St Louis was the wealthiest city on the Mississippi River also known by those in the know as the musical conveyor belt. As such, it employed a huge number of Black Jazz, Blues, Boogie Woogie and other musicians in nightclubs during WWII. The style of music known as Ragtime also became popular in St. Louis around 1900. This evolved into Jazz by 1946, a revolutionary period when some straaile Turner, is actually an R&B record. Sun Records purposely didn’t put Jackie Brenston’s picture on the front cover in order that they could sell it to white record stores. They also managed to convince white radio stations to play it.

When Alan Freed, a white radio DJ in Cleveland, heard that song, he promoted them to his predominantly white audience as “Rock n’ Roll”. Despite being a black slang term for sex Sun Records and similar record labels quickly latched on to Freed’s marketing of term “Rock n’ Roll” term which has continued to this day.

Even popular R&B hits sold under 100,000 copies but with Rock n Roll, the numbers were much more. The little known fact was that this sound. In fact, came from St. Louis nightclubs, makes a very strong case for St Louis, therefore, being the “Birthplace of RnB.”

As the years passed and Rock n’ Roll became more and more popular many people just assumed it was white music. The real history is so much more interesting and diverse.

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Earlier this year Governor Pritzker made an emergency declaration that the 18-month in-person requirement that is normally required for registering for a sportsbook had been lifted. Then in July, this requirement was reinstated. This meant that, once again, patrons had to go to a casino to register for a mobile betting app. This changed again in August which meant that users instead had to register online again.

Even before recent events, the laws around sports betting in Illinois have changed several times over the previous few years. Some of these essential law changes include the following:

2018

Lawmakers began to express interest in regulating legal sports betting in Illinois. Five bills were introduced including one from former NFL linebacker Napolean Harris. This included an integrity fee as well as other concessions for professional sports leagues lobbyists.

2019

Governor Pritzker announced that he was creating legislation to legalize sports betting and included revenue from it in his budget proposal. Five proposed amendments were initially introduced with the number passing coming down to two by May. The final bill which underwent several changes eventually made sports betting legal within the state.

2020

The first legal sports best was made at Rivers Casino Des Plaines on March 9. Later on, BetRivers were the first to create an online app on June 18.

1. Locations available for betting on sports in Illinois right now, users can register for sports betting accounts from anywhere within the state. Individuals will most likely need to visit a physical casino to register once the COVID-19 pandemic isn’t any longer an issue, however. Right now, betting online is also done from anywhere within the state. The in-person registration requirement has been waived for as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
2. The legality of sports betting in Illinois. Sports betting is now legal in Illinois. The first wager on a sports bet was made legal in the state in March 2020. There are now several casinos offering sports betting.
3. Age limit for sports betting in Illinois. To place a wager any person who is a minimum of 21 years old can bet legally on sports within the state of Illinois.
4. Regulation of sports gaming in Illinois. All regulation for sports betting in Illinois falls under the jurisdiction of The Illinois Gaming Board.

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Region 4, that has seven counties within the southwest portion of the state, where both DraftKings at Casino Queen and Argosy Casino Alton is located; had a positive test rate of around 8% which led to further mitigation measures.

According to the state’s Department of Health website, a further covid effect on casinos includes a requirement for the casinos to close at 11 p.m. and maintain a 25% capacity. The 11 p.m. closing time is also enforced with regards to bars and restaurants throughout Region 4 and across the border in St. Louis. The further mitigation measures will be in place for a fortnight, only being rolled back if the average positivity rate falls below 6.5% during that time.

When the Illinois Gaming Board allowed casinos to reopen on the 1st of July, the maximum capacity for all casinos was 50%. Rivers Casino in Des Plaines and Grand Victoria Casino via William Hill in Elgin are the other two sports betting casinos currently operating in Illinois, while Rivers and DraftKings at Casino Queen are currently the sole mobile sportsbooks available right now.

The Argosy was the second casino where sports wagers were permitted in Illinois shortly after Rivers. However, they have yet to formally file a request with the Illinois Gaming Board for a permit to commence online wagering.  They recently announced that they have not confirmed any cases at their property but continue to work with the Illinois Gaming Board, state and native leaders, and public health officials to ensure that they are following all necessary health and safety protocols. They also confirmed their latest operating hours as 9 am until 11 pm daily.

The industry has lost around $390 million in revenue during the period of over 100 days it was closed. This doesn’t include the anticipated revenues due from sports wagering and some believe that over 50% of total revenue will be lost this year.

The reopening will mean that state and native tax dollars will start to flow again. Around $100 million in casino tax income was lost during the shutdown, and municipalities with casinos lost about $23 million in total revenue.

Even when the casinos open again it is not expected that crowds will reappear in similar numbers.

These funds go towards paying the salaries of policemen and firefighters, so it is clear that the city will have to be careful of its finances for a while.

Casinos across the state have implemented policies to keep their patrons safe like cleaning common areas, slot machines, cloth tabletops, chips, dice and cards. The temperatures of guests will be checked upon entry and they will be asked to sign a document affirming they don’t have COVID-19 and haven’t had contact with anyone who has had it.

With coronavirus infections across the U.S. rising, the likelihood is that casinos will close again however so longer-term effects are yet to be seen.

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Although the housing market is weak, many activists have warned of the gentrification of St Louis and its effects on the area. Particularly in relation to the latest National Geospatial Agency (NGA) headquarters that is under construction in North St. Louis and costing $1.75 billion.

Despite employing potentially over 3000 skilled professionals there is very little evidence to suggest these workers will settle in the surrounding areas. In fact, most of the nearby neighbourhoods close to the new headquarters, has seen a housing market collapsed with some of these properties selling for less than $50,000. If these young professionals did migrate to the area there would definitely be plenty of room for them and could boost the local economy.

In contrast, central Saint Louis is booming with growth in medical, biotech, and various tech start-ups. Gentrification seems to be happening in this area with the area having more attraction to workers than other parts of the city.

The neighbourhoods undergoing “gentrification-like” processes aren’t poor minority neighbourhoods but instead neighbourhoods in and just south of the Central Corridor that ha always done relatively well.

There is also little evidence to suggest that this” gentrification” is pushing out high numbers of low income existing residents due to economic pressure. On the contrary,  the rent burden has actually fallen in many of the “gentrifying” neighbourhoods between 2000 and 2016.

Affordable housing is a problem in St. Louis, but the cause isn’t solely gentrification but stagnating wages and a rental market that’s not capable of supplying decent housing for those with low income.

For the black community, concerns about displacement are real. In the 1950s and 1960s, tens of thousands of African Americans were forcibly displaced from their homes.

Especially in older industrial cities like St. Louis, the main problem isn’t that higher-income households are moving toward the poor and pushing them out – but that they still move far from the poor, with no opportunities or resources going towards the poorer areas.

While land prices are still low, action should be taken to preserve an adequate supply of affordable housing through land trusts, nonprofit-owned housing, and other methods.

The massive disruptive challenge facing older industrial cities like St. Louis isn’t gentrification therefore but depopulation and disinvestment. The decline of solid working and middle-class neighbourhoods is the most pressing issue facing St. Louis. Ultimately, it is hoped that city residents will acquire the political power, access to jobs within the new economy, and control over their own communities to effect the changes needed.

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Situated along the Mississippi river it started out as a village in 1818. Founded by Captain James Piggott, an Illinois judge, it was built around a ferry station and originally named Ilinoistown. It was renamed East St Louis in 1861.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the town was host to a thriving industry built by luminaries such as Andrew Carnegie and J.P. Morgan. The first railroad arrived in 1855 and the Eads Bridge was built in 1874. The National Stock Yards opened in 1873 which generated the start of the meatpacking trade which was to become a major industry for the area.

As a result of all the factories which ran 24 hours a day, there was no shortage of work and people moved to the area due to the need for more workers. For a period, every decade the population doubled as people migrated there in search of a new life. Despite a thriving economy, the infamous race riot in 1917 was one of the worst in the history of the United States, and East St Louis was struck hard during the great depression.

After WWII businesses and factories started to move away from the city in search of cheaper opportunities elsewhere. This went hand in hand with a rise in unemployment and an exodus of residents.

The city government struggled to make things work as the massive drop in tax revenue meant they were unable to even pay for basic utilities such as light bills and rubbish collection. This downward spiral has continued, and unfortunately, for many residents, there has been no significant changes in quality of life.

More recently though there have been glimmers of light in the darkness. The opening of a riverboat casino was a big benefit to the economy. This not only brought tourism but employment and other redevelopment projects that brought optimism.

Other initiatives include the Enterprise Community program which has seen local government and community groups join forces to make positive changes. One of these was the construction of a new building for East St Louis’ oldest bank.

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