Rt. 31 bypass bridge work to close lanes in Algonquin
013 SUNDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2013
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ONE YEAR OF GAMBLING TERMINALS
HITTING IT BIG
House GOP looking to Senate for budget deal By ALAN FRAM and DAVID ESPO The Associated Press
Photos by Lathan Goumas – lgoumas@shawmedia.com
Dave Sloan of Port Barrington and Ron Thornton of Oakwood Hills play video gambling games Sept. 26 at Hermann’s Rest A While Bar and Grill in Port Barrington. Hermann’s was one of the test sites for the state’s video gambling program and the first McHenry County establishment with the terminals.
Video gaming terminals bringing in cash for state, municipalities, bars By JOSEPH BUSTOS jbustos@shawmedia.com Three to four times a week, Ron Thornton, 44, of Oakwood Hills, sits in front of a video gaming terminal to play video poker at Hermann’s Rest A While Bar and Grill in Port Barrington with about $100 to $200 to deposit into the machine. “When I’m winning, I’m coming more,” Thornton said. On one day, he had two hands where he hit the maximum prize of $500, along with an additional turn where he won a $250 prize. When he was done playing, Thornton printed a receipt from the terminal for $1,200. “I was on fire,” he said. “There was no doubt about, it was my best day ever.” Since video gambling went live throughout the state in October, however, Thornton
A sign hangs above the entrance to the video gambling area at Hermann’s Rest A While Bar and Grill in Port Barrington. No one under 21 years old is allowed in video gaming areas. says he’s not ahead. “You can’t win in the long run,” he said. “You’re just going to lose if you play a lot. It’s built into the system.” For the past year, video gambling has served as a revenue source for the state’s 2009 Illinois Jobs Now! capital program. When including
the state’s three-week testing period in September of last year through the month of August, people have inserted $614 million into the video gaming terminals. So far, $438 million has been cashed out to gamblers.
See GAMING, page A9
Locations of video gaming terminals Number of video gambling locations per municipality through August • Algonquin – 1 • Carpentersville – 5 • Fox Lake – 16 • Fox River Grove – 3 • Harvard – 6 • Huntley – 2 • Johnsburg – 6 • Lake in the Hills – 1 • Lakemoor – 1 • Marengo – 7 • McCullom Lake – 1 • McHenry – 11 • Port Barrington – 2 • Richmond – 4 • Spring Grove – 1
Source: Illinois Gaming Board
More inside • Video gambling has brought concerns about addiction problems. PAGE A9 • Video gambling a revenue source for Illinois Jobs Now! program, which has helped local projects. PAGE A9
WASHINGTON – Republicans and Democrats in Congress lumbered through a day of political maneuvering Saturday while a threatened default by the Treasury crept uncomfortably closer and a partial government shutdown neared the end of its second week. “We haven’t done anything yet” by way of compromise, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said after Senate leaders took control of efforts to end the impasse, although he and other Democrats said repeatedly there was reason for optimism. Across the Capitol, tea party caucus Republican Rep. John Fleming of Louisiana said there Barack was “definitely a chance Obama that we’re going to go President past the deadline” that Treasury Secretary Jack Lew has set for Congress to raise the $16.7 trillion debt limit. Lawmakers in both parties said they were watching for the reaction to the political uncer- Harry Reid tainty by the financial Senate majormarkets when they re- ity leader open after the weekend. President Barack Obama met with Senate Democratic leaders at the White House after accusing Republicans of practicing the politics of extortion. “Manufac- Rep. John turing crises to extract Fleming massive concessions R-La. isn’t how our democracy works, and we have to stop it,” he said in his weekly radio and Internet address. Ironically, though, House Republicans who triggered the shutdown with tea party-driven Jacob Lew demands to eradicate Treasury Obama’s health law con- Secretary ceded they had temporarily been reduced to virtual bystander status. “The Senate needs to hold tough,” Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., quoted Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, as telling the GOP rank and file in a private meeting. “The president now isn’t negotiating with us.” The effects of the partial government shutdown varied widely, and in some cases, states and outsiders were stepping in.
See BUDGET, page A10
LOCALLY SPEAKING
McHENRY COUNTY
RIDERS CYCLE TO STOP CHILD ABUSE A group of bicyclists will ride 360 miles in six days to raise awareness and money for Children’s Advocacy Centers across Illinois, including the Child Advocacy Center of McHenry County, which helps victims of abuse. Called “Stop the Cycle of Abuse,” the ride begins Wednesday in Hoffman Estates and ends Oct. 21 in St. Louis. For more, see PLANIT STYLE page 5.
Evan Hartmann Sarah Nader – snader@shawmedia.com
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MARENGO: Annual Settlers’ Days festival offers attendees entertainment, crafts and kids’ events. Local, B1 Vol. 28, Issue 286
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