Mayor Lori Lightfoot is extending the deadline for bidders to submit proposals for a Chicago casino, a move that comes as the city struggles to generate interest in the project.

       Lightfoot on Friday announced the city will push its deadline to Oct. 29. Originally, bidders had until Aug. 23 to submit a proposal.

       “Extending the deadline for interested bidders will allow the City to collect as many robust, impactful and transformative proposals as possible,” Lightfoot said in a statement. “I look forward to seeing these bids roll in and working very closely with whichever team is ultimately chosen to develop Chicago’s first-ever casino.”

       Some big casino operators, like MGM, have announced they would not bid. Local companies Related Midwest and Rush Street Gaming have expressed interest in a potential casino, which could raise politically uncomfortable questions if they’re chosen due to Lightfoot’s long friendship with Rush Street Gaming chairman Neil Bluhm’s daughter, Leslie, who has given more than $100,000 to Lightfoot’s political funds.

       Rush Street Gaming owns Rivers Casino in Des Plaines in partnership with Churchill Downs.

       Revenue from a Chicago casino is considered a key to the $45 billion capital bill passed by legislators in 2019. City officials also hope to use revenues to help plug future budget shortfalls as pension costs increase.

       Will Chicago ever get a casino like the Horseshoe in Hammond, Indiana, pictured in 2019? So far there is little formal interest. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)

       A Chicago casino study in summer 2019 pointed to the merits of a downtown location close to hotels and other attractions, instead of in outlying neighborhoods that out-of-towners with money to spend might deem unsafe.

       But backing a mega-casino and entertainment complex in the touristy part of the city would be particularly tricky for Lightfoot, who ran for mayor promising to turn City Hall’s focus to helping struggling Chicagoans after her predecessor, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, was seen as favoring the wealthier parts of town.

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