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Chicago-area casino license holder offers to sell
CHICAGO, May 23 (Reuters) - Shareholders in the potentially lucrative Emerald casino gaming license offered on Thursday to sell their stake to the highest bidder and meet Illinois officials' concerns that they not profit from the sale.
The relocated license that was originally provided for a failed Mississippi riverboat casino has become embroiled in a long legal row that has featured allegations of organized crime connections and lying to regulators by some casino investors.
The license's current owners sought to mollify authorities, including Illinois Attorney General Jim Ryan and state regulators, by selling their stakes for no real profit, Emerald attorney Barry Montgomery said.
"The new proposal has zero profit for any of the alleged wrong-doers," Montgomery said at a news conference. "It would provide in excess of $500 million to the state and, if accepted, it would provide an additional $500 million (in yearly tax revenues) when it is up and running."
A previous buyout offer of Emerald worth $615 million from MGM Mirage MGG.N was rejected in March by the Illinois Gaming Board, and regulators have expressed opposition to current shareholders' reaping a profit from any sale.
Montgomery said MGM would presumably be permitted to reenter the bidding, but the casino could be relocated elsewhere besides its current proposed site in the northwest Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois. Building the casino in Rosemont would create one of the most lucrative casinos outside the gambling havens of Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Las Vegas, casino backers say.
Aides to Illinois Gov. George Ryan, meanwhile, have urged the casino regulators to consider the need for a windfall from the gambling license sale to help close the state's projected 2003 budget deficit of at least $1.2 billion.
In a letter to the Illinois Gaming Board delivered on Thursday, Montgomery outlined the offer that he said would provide roughly $500 million to the state while repaying Emerald's investors their $63 million investment. The state would reap another $500 million in tax revenues once the casino was up and running, rather than being delayed by more hearings or litigation.
Only those Emerald investors not alleged to have engaged in wrong-doing, which has included lying to the gaming board and having organized crime connections, would receive an 8 percent annual return on their investment. Other investors would receive only their money back, including a portion of some $35 million in loans to the Emerald operation, Montgomery said.
The gaming board was set to meet again on Tuesday. Calls to Attorney General Ryan's office were not returned.
CHICAGO, May 23 (Reuters) - Shareholders in the potentially lucrative Emerald casino gaming license offered on Thursday to sell their stake to the highest bidder and meet Illinois officials' concerns that they not profit from the sale.
The relocated license that was originally provided for a failed Mississippi riverboat casino has become embroiled in a long legal row that has featured allegations of organized crime connections and lying to regulators by some casino investors.
The license's current owners sought to mollify authorities, including Illinois Attorney General Jim Ryan and state regulators, by selling their stakes for no real profit, Emerald attorney Barry Montgomery said.
"The new proposal has zero profit for any of the alleged wrong-doers," Montgomery said at a news conference. "It would provide in excess of $500 million to the state and, if accepted, it would provide an additional $500 million (in yearly tax revenues) when it is up and running."
A previous buyout offer of Emerald worth $615 million from MGM Mirage MGG.N was rejected in March by the Illinois Gaming Board, and regulators have expressed opposition to current shareholders' reaping a profit from any sale.
Montgomery said MGM would presumably be permitted to reenter the bidding, but the casino could be relocated elsewhere besides its current proposed site in the northwest Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois. Building the casino in Rosemont would create one of the most lucrative casinos outside the gambling havens of Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Las Vegas, casino backers say.
Aides to Illinois Gov. George Ryan, meanwhile, have urged the casino regulators to consider the need for a windfall from the gambling license sale to help close the state's projected 2003 budget deficit of at least $1.2 billion.
In a letter to the Illinois Gaming Board delivered on Thursday, Montgomery outlined the offer that he said would provide roughly $500 million to the state while repaying Emerald's investors their $63 million investment. The state would reap another $500 million in tax revenues once the casino was up and running, rather than being delayed by more hearings or litigation.
Only those Emerald investors not alleged to have engaged in wrong-doing, which has included lying to the gaming board and having organized crime connections, would receive an 8 percent annual return on their investment. Other investors would receive only their money back, including a portion of some $35 million in loans to the Emerald operation, Montgomery said.
The gaming board was set to meet again on Tuesday. Calls to Attorney General Ryan's office were not returned.