Chicago Sun-Times: Stephens willing to end casino push, for $50 mil.

Rosemont Mayor Donald E. Stephens said Monday he's willing to pull the plug on his long casino quest -- if certain conditions are met.

"If we were made whole it would not bother me if the casino was not in Rosemont," Stephens told the Chicago Sun-Times.

To be "made whole," Rosemont would need to be paid about $50 million from a proposed sale of Emerald Casino's dormant gaming license to cover the cost of a parking garage the village built for Emerald. The rusting steel shell of what was to become Emerald's gambling barge remains visible outside that garage -- a reminder of how mob allegations derailed Emerald's plans for Rosemont.

Rosemont has since moved forward with a flurry of court cases to steer Emerald's gaming license to another company that could finish the barge. But those efforts haven't worked so far, and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has been among those to question whether Stephens is linked to the mob.

'I've got the armor of God'

Stephens guffawed when told of FBI special agent John Mallul's testimony Monday that Stephens met with five mobsters -- including two linked to a waste-hauling firm that did business at the Emerald site -- and two mob associates. Stephens said he was at his vacation home in Delavan, Wis., on May 29, 1999, when the meeting at an Elmwood Park restaurant, Armand's, allegedly occurred.

"I've never been in Armand's restaurant," Stephens said. "I've never had lunch with any of these people. I've never had breakfast with any of these people. . . . I've never went to the movies with any of these people. Nothing.

"This was Memorial Day weekend. I was at my home in Delavan."

Stephens stressed his willingness to walk away from the casino deal would be contingent on the approval of his fellow village trustees and the village's lawyers. When asked if doing so might appear to be an admission that Rosemont has links to organized crime and taint his nearly 50-year run as the village's only mayor, he replied, "I know that I haven't got those associations. . . . I've got the armor of God, and I'm not worried."