Bally’s expected to buy Freedom Center site ‘this week’ for planned Chicago casino

Monday, October 10, 2022 7:03 PM
Photo: Bally’s Corp./SCB - Rendering of Bally's proposed casino in Chicago's River North neighborhood
  • Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune

With time running out on its option to buy the Freedom Center printing plant, Bally’s is expected to close the deal “this week,” sources said Monday, bringing the 30-acre site in River West another step closer to housing the Chicago casino.

The Rhode Island-based casino company has an option to buy the site from Dallas-based Nexstar Media Group, the nation’s largest TV station owner, which acquired it in 2019 as part of its $4.1 billion purchase of Tribune Media — the former broadcast parent of Tribune Publishing.

But the option to purchase the Freedom Center expires Oct. 25, according to sources, giving Bally’s two weeks to complete the deal.