Champaign council approves new video-gambling regulations

CHAMPAIGN(Illinois) — The city council voted Tuesday night to enact regulations on video gambling.

The new regulations passed 8-1, with council member Tom Bruno voting against. They come after concern from residents and some council members over the effects that video gambling has on low-income neighborhoods or those prone to addiction, as well as the way some gambling establishments are located close to each other.

After video gambling was legalized city-wide in 2012, the city used liquor licenses to regulate establishments that provide it. Many of them were places like restaurants where food and liquor was already sold.

But after seeing a spike in so-called video-gambling cafes or lounges, the council considered specific gambling regulation. Now the amount of gambling cafes/lounges, which the city identifies as places that make 50 percent or more of their revenue from gaming, is being capped at 23.

There are 19 gambling cafes/lounges now out of the 59 establishments that offer gambling in Champaign, and Deputy City Manager Matt Roeschley said the cap will be hit once a few with pending applications are approved.

An interactive map of every establishment that offers video gambling in Champaign as of Jan. 3, organized by type, is below.

In addition, gambling cafes/lounges will be under a license created specifically for them. It’s known as Class VL and will cost $4,200 per year, according to a city report. Assistant city attorney Kathryn Cataldo said that price is the same as a Class AP liquor license and existing cafes/lounges can apply for it once their current liquor licenses expire.

For establishments that make at least 75 percent of their revenue from food and beverages, the city now has a video-gambling rider that is added to a liquor license to provide gambling privileges. It costs $500 per year, according to the city report, and does not apply to licensed truck stops.

The riders come with a 12-month waiting period so establishments can prove they don’t fall under the definition of a gambling cafe or lounge. Some council members were confused by that during Tuesday’s meeting, saying they thought the waiting period only applied to gambling cafes/lounges.

The council still voted to pass the regulations — a city-imposed freeze on gambling expansion is due to expire Jan. 23 — but will use the next week to fully understand it. City manager Dorothy David said the council could propose that the rule be tweaked, which some members expressed interest in.

The final fee being added in the new regulations is an annual fee that applies to each gambling terminal. It’s $250 and will apply to all establishments that provide gambling.

The regulations also prohibit gambling cafes/lounges in the Campustown area.

Bruno, who has always voted against gambling regulations, said the free market should decide how many gambling cafes/lounges there are.

“There needs to be an extreme, compelling government reason to impose our value system on our neighbors and say ‘I think you’re wasting your money,” Bruno said. “These (gambling) machines haven’t been unsightly or the source of crime.“

Council member Greg Stock, who led the effort for gambling regulations, said there may not be crime at gambling establishments, but gambling can cause people to commit crime.

“Gaming cafes are largely not locally owned, and I’ve never seen more than one person working at them — they’re not job creators,” Stock said. “They’re set up to do nothing but take money out of the community.“

People put a total of $5,211,341 into video-gambling terminals Champaign establishments last month, according to data from the Illinois Gaming Board. Of that, $3,975,438.32 went home with players, while $308,977.57 went to the state, $61,795.38 went to the city and $865,129.73 was split evenly between the gambling establishments and terminal operators.

In other business, the council also unanimously approved development limitations, for 180 days, in three zoning districts known as In-Town Multifamily, In-Town Mixed Use and In-Town Neighborhood Conservation. This is being done to draft new development regulations, according to a city report.

Source: news-gazette.com