(Bloomberg) -- The Chicago City Council has approved a $1.7 billion proposal by Bally’s Corp. to build the city’s first casino, a project that has been championed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration as integral to reducing the city’s steep pension costs.  

The city council voted 41 to 7 to move forward with the proposal, a win for Lightfoot who sees the endeavor as a key to Chicago’s economic rebound. While the idea of a casino in Chicago has been debated on for more than three decades, Wednesday’s vote comes after a yearlong process by the city that included sifting through five proposals from three companies. 

The proposed casino complex is projected to eventually deliver around $200 million a year in tax revenue, which would help chip away at the city’s burgeoning fire and police pension costs. Bally’s bid also included a $40 million upfront payment, which would go into Chicago’s 2023 budget that’s projected to have a $305.7 million deficit. 

In addition to housing the third-largest US city’s first casino, the complex Bally’s had proposed also includes a hotel, theater and restaurants on a portion of the Tribune Publishing plant site.

Bally’s must now win approval from the Illinois Gaming Board before it can build the complex.

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