Bally's Permanent Casino

Level-1 designed the digital backbone for Bally’s world-class, permanent casino resort in Chicago’s River West.

While continuing to operate a temporary casino in the historic Medinah Temple, Bally’s is now bringing its permanent vision to life in the River West neighborhood at 777 W. Chicago Avenue transforming the former Tribune Freedom Center into a next-generation casino and entertainment destination. The nearly 2-billion-dollar project spans 30 acres and is being developed in partnership with architecture firm HKS. It features a 34-story, 500-room hotel, a 168,000-square-foot casino floor, a 3,000-seat theater, 6 restaurants, a food hall, and a 2-acre public park. Together, these programmatic elements contribute nearly a million square feet of programmable space, excluding restaurants and other hospitality components. The casino will include approximately 3,300 slot machines, 173 table games, and VIP areas, all connected physically and operationally by new infrastructure. 

Level-1 Global Solutions in partnership with IMEG was selected to lead the design and implementation of the technology infrastructure supporting both Bally’s temporary site at Medinah Temple and the permanent campus now under construction at 777 W. Chicago Avenue. Our involvement with the project began during its earliest stages, when we were engaged as part of the original design team led by Gensler. When new capital partners restructured the project and appointed HKS to lead the architectural redesign, Level-1 was asked to continue. Despite the change in architectural leadership, our role remained constant offering continuity, institutional knowledge, and long-range systems expertise from interim activation through full-scale realization.

Our Scope Includes 

• Complete voice, data, and network infrastructure across temporary (Medinah Temple) and permanent (River West) sites
• Structured cabling systems supporting casino floor operations, administrative spaces, and hospitality services 
• Network infrastructure design tailored for high-density gaming areas, including wired and wireless connectivity 
• Design support for security systems, surveillance, emergency communications, and back-of-house coordination 
• Ongoing systems commissioning from site prep through full buildout, ensuring seamless continuity across phases 

As construction progresses, Level-1 continues to lay the digital and operational foundation groundwork for Bally’s long-term presence in Chicago. Unlike most temporary installations, the Medinah Temple venue will remain in operation even after the River West resort opens, extending Bally’s physical and cultural footprint across both neighborhoods. What began as a 34,000-square-foot activation with nearly 800 slot machines has evolved into a 1 million plus square foot entertainment destination. Designed for performance, built to entertain, and engineered to endure, the new resort is being equipped with systems prepared to deliver a unified, high-capacity guest experience at scale.