Hard Rock Casino Rockford celebrates as final beam is installed.
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The Hard Rock Casino Rockford next summer will be bustling with activity as thousands of visitors gather to gamble, see a show or grab a dinner at its resort on East State Street.
On Wednesday, casino dignitaries along with Rockford and Winnebago County leaders celebrated as the final steel beam was hoisted into place and installed during an age-old construction tradition.
The beam's installation represented the completion of the outer structure of the casino, Hard Rock International Chief Operating Officer Jon Lucas said.
"This is a great milestone, but it is only one more steppingstone to get us to the finish line," Lucas said. "I know when you look behind me and see this building, it really brings things to reality. Obviously, we are going to build a permanent facility, and we are going to bring Hard Rock here to Rockford. This is just another step along the way."
Invited guests signed the beam before it was hoisted into place by construction firm Ringland Johnson Construction.
Hard Rock plans to open the casino by late August 2024 featuring a 180,000-square-foot casino, 1,300 slot machines, 44 live table games, a six-table live poker room, a sportsbook, Hard Rock Café and Hard Rock Live venue.
Coming on the heels of an announcement that passenger rail would be returning to Rockford for the first time since 1981, state Rep. Dave Vella, D-Rockford, said this is an exciting time for the region.
"My grandpa (Zeke Giorgi) would talk about it all the time — a casino and the train," Vella said. "To see them both in the same month is very exciting and bodes well for the future of Rockford. Rockford is on a very clear trajectory up. We are moving a good direction."
