HILCO GLOBAL ANNOUNCES JUNE 26 AS DEADLINE TO SUBMIT BIDS FOR THE HAWTHORNE RACE COURSE
NORTHBROOK, Ill., June 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hilco Global Real Estate Practice, in cooperation with Province LLC, announces its engagement to help secure a recapitalization going-concern buyer or investor for the real estate of Hawthorne Race Course as part of its Chapter 11 restructuring proceedings. Qualified bids are being accepted until June 26. The property is being marketed concurrently as a going-concern, with two integrated casino and racing development and licensing opportunities, as well as a prime industrial infill redevelopment sale potential given its prominent location and scale.
Founded in 1891, Hawthorne Race Course is Illinois' oldest horse racing venue and has been a fixture of the Chicago racing scene for more than a century. Located in Stickney, Illinois, about 10 miles from downtown Chicago, this property spans 108± acres and includes 1.12 million± SF of buildings – 364,421± SF grandstand and clubhouse, 760,024± SF of barns, residential and ancillary structures, and facilities capable of accommodating more than 2,100 horses.
The offering presents buyers with a highly flexible acquisition opportunity. As an operating gaming and racing platform, Hawthorne Race Course holds valuable Illinois gaming and racing entitlements, including rights tied to a potential casino development with up to 2,000 authorized gaming positions, an active master sports wagering license, Illinois' sole harness racing organizational license and an established off-track betting network with 10 active locations. The property currently supports both Thoroughbred and harness racing operations, pari-mutuel wagering, food and beverage operations and simulcast betting.
Illinois continues to rank among the nation's leading gaming markets, with statewide casino adjusted gross receipts reaching approximately $1.9 billion in 2025, while Illinois sportsbooks handled more than $15.6 billion in wagers during the year, representing approximately 11.7% year-over-year growth and making Illinois one of the largest legal sports wagering markets in the United States. Hawthorne's existing customer base, gaming entitlements and strategic location within the Chicago metropolitan area position the property to capitalize on continued growth across casino gaming, sports wagering and entertainment demand.
Due to the property's strategic location and ideal I-2, Heavy Industrial zoning, this site also supports strong consideration as a highly desirable industrial redevelopment opportunity. As one of the largest infill development parcels remaining anywhere in the Chicagoland area, the site combines hard-to-replicate contiguous land mass, immediate highway access and strategic proximity to major transportation infrastructure, supporting the opportunity to develop modern logistics, distribution, manufacturing or mixed industrial uses in a supply-constrained urban market.
Situated along Cicero Avenue, the site is positioned just south of the Roosevelt/Cicero Industrial Corridor, an established manufacturing hub. The surrounding area is anchored by a range of distribution and logistics operators, supporting the property's industrial potential. Within a 10-mile radius, the property benefits from access to Chicago's main multimodal transportation networks, including Interstates 55, 290 and 294, Chicago Midway International Airport, BNSF Cicero Intermodal Facility, BNSF Corwith Intermodal Facility, Chicago Intermodal Terminal and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.
Chicago continues to rank among the nation's leading business and logistics hubs, supported by a globally connected economy, extensive transportation infrastructure and one of the country's deepest labor pools. Ranked the No. 1 metro area in the United States for corporate expansion and relocation projects for 13 consecutive years, the larger Chicago-Naperville-Elgin-IN-WI (Chicagoland) area continues to attract institutional investment. This region is home to more than 9.3 million residents and a workforce of over 5 million people, with advanced manufacturing serving as a key industry supporting approximately 335,000 jobs. In May 2026, World Business Chicago released their State of the Economy 2025 report and projected Chicagoland's Gross Regional Product to reach approximately $929 billion in 2025, following an $886 billion in economic output recorded in 2024, making the city rank between the 23rd and 24th largest economies in the world.
"The Chapter 11 process creates a unique opportunity for qualified buyers to acquire an iconic regional asset through a court-supervised transaction structure designed to maximize value and provide execution certainty," said Adam Rosen, partner at Province LLC. "Hawthorne combines a long-standing operating platform with valuable gaming entitlements and substantial real estate optionality, creating multiple paths for future investment and redevelopment."
"Whether as an ongoing race course and casino or as an industrial redevelopment, few properties in the Chicagoland market combine Hawthorne's name recognition, scale, location and future potential," said Steve Madura, managing director of operations at Hilco Global. "With exceptional multi-modal logistics connectivity and strong surrounding market fundamentals, Hawthorne represents a truly rare opportunity to reimagine a landmark asset for its next chapter. Regardless of its future use, this sale is a once-in-a-generation chance to shape one of the region's most distinctive properties."
The accelerated process is expected to attract interest from gaming operators, industrial developers, entertainment groups, institutional investors as well as adaptive reuse developers evaluating large-scale redevelopment opportunities within the Chicago market.
The sale is subject to U.S. Bankruptcy Court Approval, Northern District of Illinois (Eastern Division), Petition No. 1:26-bk-03505, In re: Hawthorne Race Course, Inc. and in cooperation with Jeff Azuse, IL Broker, Lic. #471.011086. Qualified bids are due by June 26 and must be submitted on the Bid Procedures available for review and download from the Hilco Global real estate sales website and by contacting representatives of Province LLC.
Interested buyers should reach out directly for requirements to participate in the sale process. For further information about the going-concern sale, please contact Province LLC, Adam Rosen at (702) 879-4937 or [email protected], Rick Darnold at (702) 296-2632 or [email protected] or Mark Schlecker at (929) 505-0386 or [email protected].
For further information about the redevelopment sale, please contact Steve Madura at (847) 504-2478 or [email protected], Jamie Coté at (847) 418-2187 or [email protected], Joel Schneider at (847) 418-2723 or [email protected] or Henry Nash at (847) 313-4796 or [email protected]. To obtain access to due diligence documents, please visit HilcoRealEstateSales.com or call (855) 755-2300.
About Hilco Global
Hilco Global, a subsidiary of ORIX Corporation USA, is a diversified financial services company that delivers integrated professional services and capital solutions that help clients maximize value and drive performance across the retail, commercial and industrial, real estate, manufacturing, brand and intellectual property sectors and more. Hilco Global provides a range of customized solutions to healthy, stressed and distressed companies to resolve complex situations and enhance long-term enterprise value. Hilco Global works to deliver the best possible result by aligning interests with clients and providing strategic advice and, in many instances, the capital required to complete the deal. Hilco Global is based in Northbrook, Illinois and has more than 810 professionals operating on four continents. Visit www.hilcoglobal.com.
SOURCE Hilco Trading, LLC
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