Your next gambling destination – Chicago O’Hare?

Illinois just ended a 15 year battle over their 10th casino license. The license had originally been awarded to the village of Rosemont back in 1997, but when it went dormant, it was revoked. It was then moved back to to the village when a different casino closed, and once again revoked when investigators suspected mob ties with the license holding company.

Rosemont had even started building the actual casino site, and anyone flying in or out of Chicago O’Hare will have probably seen the half built lot which has been untouched since 2005.

In the final week of 2008, the Illinois gaming commission finally awarded the 10th license to the city of Des Plaines. The proposed location is next to the airport, and is only seperated by a some houses, ironically enough, in the village of Rosemont.

The Des Plaines Casino is scheduled to open in 2010, but more legal troubles could delay that some more. Needless to say, Rosemont was not too thrilled with the decision, as they probably thought of themselves as the clear winners.

So, if all works out, anyone passing through O’Hare in 2010 will be able to grab a 10 minute shuttle bus to the new Casino, and lose their money before heading to Vegas to lose more of it. When the location is completed, it’ll house a hotel, shopping and dining district as well as the proposed 50,000 square foot casino.