🎸 Happy Wednesday! On this day in 1966, The Beatles played their final Chicago concert.

🌧️ Today's weather: A chance for more thunderstorms with a high of 78.

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Situational awareness: The Chicago Park District is keeping 20 neighborhood pools and 23 beaches open through Labor Day, prioritizing neighborhoods more vulnerable to extreme heat.

Today's newsletter is 1,127 words — a 4-minute read.

Bally's Chicago is in a standoff with the city over video gambling, raising questions about the future of the $1.7 billion casino, hotel and entertainment complex.

Why it matters: Bally's promises to open its casino next year, but this latest impasse is yet another hurdle for the massive River West development that was originally supposed to open this year.

Driving the news: Bally's informed the Chicago Community Builders Collective last weekend that it's pausing some construction, arguing Chicago's legalization of video gambling terminals violates the casino operator's 2022 Host Community Agreement with the city.

Catch up quick: Last December, City Council passed a budget that relied on $6.8 million in revenue from video gambling, despite Mayor Brandon Johnson's objections.

• Ald. Anthony Beale, a major proponent of legalization, along with leaders of the hospitality industry, argue the gaming machines will give bars and restaurants a much-needed infusion of cash.

What they're saying: "The potential for an uncontrolled proliferation of video gambling terminals (VGTs) is in breach of the City’s commitment not to expand gaming in the Host Community Agreement (HCA) and creates uncertainty that could be harmful for Bally’s Chicago prospects," a spokesperson told Axios in a statement.

How it works: Licensees must hold an active liquor license when applying for an operator license from the Illinois Gaming Board.

• Once the IGB affirms that an establishment is eligible for a license, Chicago must also issue a location license.

Friction point: The city hasn't issued any licenses.

Zoom in: At July's meeting, the Illinois Gaming Board approved dozens of licenses for Chicago businesses, including Babe's on Milwaukee, Cookie's Cocktail Lounge, D'Agostino's, Green Apple Pancake House and Miller's Pub.

• Six additional restaurants and bars were approved in June.

What's next

Mayor Brandon Johnson moved yesterday to tighten data center rules in the city and is calling on state lawmakers to follow suit.

Why it matters: Johnson seems to suggest Springfield legislators, including Gov. JB Pritzker, are not doing enough.

What they're saying: "While we strengthen protections here in Chicago, the state must ensure that data centers protect our water, invest in energy affordability, and support public benefit agreements, and account for their cumulative impact on environmental justice communities," Johnson said at a news conference yesterday.

• He specifically urged Springfield to pass the stalled POWER Act, which demands more data center transparency and energy cost mitigation.

Between the lines: Johnson's executive order is not earth-shaking, but could be a savvy political move amid strong data center backlash.

• It pushes stronger enforcement of air, noise and water pollution rules while urging the City Council to consider a temporary moratorium on new facilities.

Catch up quick: Illinois has the nation's fourth-largest inventory of data centers with 262 and counting. Chicago hosts 39.

• During this year's spring legislative session, environmental advocates pushed for greater data center regulation with the failed POWER Act and a bill to pause new tax incentives for the facilities. Pritzker later used an executive order to pause the incentives.

The other side: “Governor Pritzker is not opposed to local communities deciding that a data center moratorium is right for them," a Pritzker spokesperson tells Axios.

• " The administration is working with lawmakers and stakeholders to pass comprehensive legislation during the November veto session.”

Go deeper

🚨 Yesterday's severe storms battered the city and suburbs, forcing downtown evacuations, downing power lines and uprooting trees. One person died in a home explosion in Portage, Indiana.

• Three tornadoes were confirmed in the south suburbs, while thousands remain without power and some schools are closed in Northwest Indiana. (ABC 7)

🏈 Bears safety Coby Bryant underwent surgery on the knee he injured in training camp and will now likely miss most of the regular season. (CHGO)

🏙️ The exterior work on the first of two skyscrapers planned for 400 N. Lake Shore has been completed. The towers are being built on the former site of "The Spire." (Sun-Times)

🕺🏿 Ald. Daniel La Spata warns that unsanctioned raves at the shuttered Congress Theater in Logan Square could keep it from being renovated. (Block Club)

Chicago Humanities has announced its lineup for the annual Fall Festival, kicking off Sept. 14 and running through November.

Why it matters: The Chicago Humanities Fall Festival is one of the premier cultural festivals, on par with the New Yorker Festival, offering interesting discussions on the most pressing issues and cultural touchstones.

What to expect: Two months of programming at venues stretching across Chicago and Evanston, including:

• Talk and Singalong with "Monty Python’s" Eric Idle at 1pm on Oct. 4 at Northwestern's Cahn Auditorium.
• Bestselling author Leïla Slimani at 5:30pm on Oct. 4 at Northwestern's Lutkin Hall.
• Radio and podcast host Ira Glass and world-renowned writer Etgar Keret at 7:30pm on Oct. 5 at Athenaeum Center.

Zoom in: This year, the fest is dedicating Sept. 26 to Pilsen, with tours of the neighborhood's public art and architecture, a conversation with Latino music documentarian, photojournalist and author Ramón Hernández and deep dives into Chicano culture.

If you go: Tickets are on sale now for Chicago Humanities members and available to the public on Thursday.

Read more

👋 Hey, it's Justin!

I'm excited about our upcoming 5th anniversary show and the premiere of our game show, "Chicago Knows Best."

• It's based on the weekly answers you've provided in this very newsletter.

Details: The show will be at The Hideout on Sept. 3. Axios's Mike Allen will be there, and I'll announce more special guests next week!

• Get your tickets now, or, if you're a member, RSVP for free.

In the meantime, let's keep the answers coming. Today's survey is all about how Chicago watches sports.

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Edited by Larry Graham.

🤣 Carrie is excited to check out "Vape! The Grease Parody" at Apollo Theater later this month.

🍺 Monica is nostalgically awaiting the tapping of the very last barrel of Schlitz to be imbibed in Chicago ever. It happens today at Glunz Tavern in Old Town.

😣 Justin is the one responsible for writing verticle instead of vertical in yesterday's newsletter. He is sorry for the mistake.

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