Full House Resorts, a flagship casino developer and operator based in Las Vegas, Nevada, has publicly announced that it plans to officially open its newest casino to the public on Friday, Feb 17, 2023 at 8 PM (CT) in Waukegan, Illinois.

Pre-Opening event:

After receiving final approval from the Illinois Gaming Board on Thursday, The Temporary by American Place will host a private VIP reception that will start at 5 PM on Friday.

After that, exactly three hours later, the casino will officially open to the public.

Commenting on the opening of the casino,  Daniel R. Lee, president and chief executive officer of Full House Resorts, said: “We thank the Illinois Gaming Board and its staff for their assistance throughout The Temporary’s construction and preparation. 

““I also want to thank our own team of approximately 500 founding employees, who have worked diligently to prepare us for this exciting moment. We are eager to welcome Chicagoland residents to The Temporary beginning on February 17.”

However, the opening date has been postponed several times pending approval from Illinois regulator.

Temporary casino layout:

When it opens, The Temporary by American Place casino will be the 12th land-based casino in Illinois.

It’s located close to the shore of Lake Michigan, right between Chicago and Milwaukee, 30 minutes north of O’Hare International Airport.

Being located in a lakeside town, the casino’s interior design “draws inspiration from a day at the lake, with lush greenery and boat paddles.”

The temporary casino reportedly features nearly 1,000 slot machines, 50 table games, 28 of which will be operating on opening night, three restaurants, North Shore Steak & Seafood, Asian Azteca and L’Américain. According to the casino, of the three restaurants, only the latter, which was serving Tuesday, ahead of the official opening, will be open to patrons from Saturday, Feb. 18th. The other two will reportedly open some time in April along with the sportsbook.

Visitors will also find a large canoe center bar with bar-top video poker where where customers can experience unique cocktails and where they can see an extraordinary chandelier made from canoes, as well as two custom-built Airstream trailers inside the casino that will serve local craft beer, salads, paninis, sandwiches, signature coffee and espresso beverages.

Also, the casino will have projection mapping tool that will convert the exterior of the casino into a state-of-the-art display.

Circa Sportsbook will debut this year:

However, an alliance with Waukegan casino owner Full House will allow Circa to introduce its Illinois sportsbook app.

But the Illinois regulator still considers Circa Sports Illinois LLC an “applicant.”

If granted the license, Circa will join DraftKings, Caesars, BetMGM, PointsBet, BetRivers, FanDuel and Barstool as the eight sports wagering operator in Illinois.

Permanent casino in Waukegan coming in 2025:

As for the permanent casino, it will officially open in 2025 and its projected to cost $400 million.

Once built, it will offer 1,640 slots, 100 table games, a permanent sportsbook, a 1,500-seat entertainment space and 20 “villa-style” rooms called the Mansion in its starting phase. The second phase will involve a luxury hotel with 150 rooms.

As Full House is considered one of the operators that puts the satisfaction of the players first, this casino will provide more than 400 jobs opportunities for the people from the city between Chicago and Milwaukee.

More casinos are projected to open in Illinois in 2023:

In addition to this casino, five more are predicted to open in Illinois by the end of this year. They are:

  • Golden Nugget Danville – planned to open in March 2023;
  • The temporary Bally’s Chicago casino – planned to open at the Medinah Temple in June 2023 (the permanent Bally’s Chicago is scheduled to open in 2026);
  • Walker’s Bluff Casino Resort in Williamson County planned to open sometime in 2023;
  • A permanent Hard Rock Rockford casino — planned to open late in 2023 (the Hard Rock: Opening Act temporary casino opened in 2021);
  • Wind Creek Chicago Southland Casino on the border between Homewood and East Hazel Crest, IL — planned to open in late 2023 or early 2024.