Chicago Construction News staff writer
The Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) issued a stop-work order at the Bally’s Chicago casino construction site in River West last week, after discovering an unauthorized waste hauler with past alleged ties to organized crime was operating at the project.
Construction was halted after D&P Construction Co., a Melrose Park-based waste management company, was found to be providing dumpsters at the 30-acre site. D&P was subcontracted by the Chicago Community Builders Collective, a minority-led partnership overseeing general contracting for Bally’s $1.7 billion permanent casino complex.
The IGB launched an investigation following a report by the Chicago Sun-Times, which highlighted D&P-branded dumpsters at the site and contacted regulators. The company was previously linked by the FBI to late mob boss John “No Nose” DiFronzo and his brother, Peter DiFronzo — both leaders in the Chicago Outfit.
“The Illinois Gaming Board issued an order to cease construction work on the Bally’s Chicago permanent casino in connection with a pending IGB investigation into the use of undisclosed and unapproved vendors at the construction site,” the IGB said in a statement. “This raises several serious concerns as the IGB does not know who is associated with D&P and if any of those associations could potentially violate the Act or rules.”
Bally’s has acknowledged the regulatory action.
“We appreciate the diligence and action of IGB,” the company said in a statement to the Sun Times. “This is the process at work. We look forward to working with the IGB to eliminate the possibility of it happening again.”
The IGB has a strict zero-tolerance policy regarding vendors with criminal ties, emphasizing the importance of maintaining integrity in Illinois’ gaming industry, which has been marred in the past by organized crime infiltration.
Bally’s broke ground on the Chicago project last year and the location is expected to be the largest casino complex in the state.
