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The proposal for a new land-based Downtown Chicago Casino took a step forward on Monday as House Speaker Michael Madigan gave his support to a gambling expansion plan that would raise an estimated $1billion per year for the state of Illinois. A Downtown Chicago Casino has been in the works for many years, and has been presented as one option to help raise transit funding as the CTA Holiday Train rolls towards a January Doomsday.

People on both sides of the Transit and Downtown Chicago Casino fronts hope to have a deal that resolves both issues by the end of the year. In the past, several high profile locations have been proposed as locations for a Downtown Chicago Casino including Navy Pier, The old post office site in the South Loop and Land west of McCormick Place. Whatever the situation, a Casino in Downtown Chicago would give a boost to the economy, but also runs a high risk of bringing the other negatives that are associated with gambling.

The new proposal includes many of the elements that already passed the Senate in September, including a huge, land-based Downtown Chicago Casino and thousands more slot machines at Illinois’ nine existing riverboats.

Madigan’s plan also calls for another new riverboat casino and reissuing Illinois’ 10th casino license, which has been tied up in legal limbo since it was approved for the Chicago suburb of Rosemont in 1999. The Senate-backed plan called for two new licenses.

The speaker also wants 3,600 gambling positions at the state’s five horse racing tracks, something the Senate idea didn’t include.

Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch said the governor’s office hadn’t seen details of the proposal and would need to compare them with what leaders had discussed in recent weeks.

On another note, I would like to give a shout-out to a fellow Chicago-based blogger. Be sure to stop by at DaveLife for some good insider info about the Windy City.

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