112811 City places moratorium on gaming parlors

  • By Sharon Haught
  • November 22, 2011
  • 263
                        
Summary: For the next 180 days a moratorium on new adult gaming parlors and sweepstakes terminal devices will be in place in the City of Wooster. A moratorium on new adult gaming parlors and sweepstakes terminal devices is now in place in the City of Wooster. The members of Wooster City Council voted unanimously to place a 180 day moratorium on the processing or approval of applications for permits or approvals under the city’s zoning and building codes for any premises for which an adult gaming parlor or sweepstakes terminal device is proposed to be located. According to Wooster City Councilman Mike Buytendyk the reasons council made the move at this time are threefold. Buytendyk noted that under Wooster’s existing zoning ordinance there are no provisions that fit these types of establishments which lead the city’s Planning Commission, the City Planner and City Engineer to suggest the idea of putting a moratorium in place until appropriate provisions could be added to the zoning code. Buytendyk noted that the second factor which lead to the introduction of the legislation centers around proposed legislation pending before the Ohio General Assembly as House Bill 195. “We are not sure what the State of Ohio is going to do,” said Buytendyk noting “there is a House Bill circulating down in Columbus which might regulate this and completely take it out of our hands.” The final consideration for bringing the legislation forward concerns the possibility of the city charging some type of licensing fees for adult gaming parlors. “If we get the appropriate zoning…there might be some way to get some sort of licensing fee if the state doesn’t preempt this,” said Buytendyk adding that it would be preferable not to try to “throw something together not knowing what the state is going to do.” According to Buytendyk by adopting the 180 day moratorium city officials will have the time they need to craft language for the zoning code specific to these types of businesses. “They are like any business. They attract people. A lot of times their hours are late at night so we want to make sure that we don’t interfere with residential neighborhoods,” said Buytendyk adding “it just seems to be the prudent thing to take a wait and look attitude at it.” Buytendyk noted that a number of other communities in Wayne County have already adopted similar ordinances. “Until we get our zoning worked out we don’t want this to all of a sudden become a Mecca for these gaming parlors because we’re the only city or municipality in Wayne County that doesn’t have anything and everybody and their brother that thinks they can run a gaming parlor is coming into Wooster,” said Buytendyk noting that by the end of the year six or possibly seven such businesses would be located in the city. “I understand that a lot of times the marketplace may take care of that but we’d rather be proactive,” said Buytendyk. Buytendyk noted that because legislatures are prohibited from passing ex post facto laws, existing gaming parlors would not be affected by the moratorium. Much of the discussion of the approval of the moratorium centered around the status of House Bill 195. “Internet cafes and sweepstakes parlors that are skirting the definitions of what is legal are popping up all across Ohio. Since these games are unregulated, there is no standard for what the payout should be, putting players at a disadvantage," said Attorney General Mike DeWine in a press release issued in April in support of the legislation. The legislation provides for licensing by the Ohio Casino Control Commission of skill-based amusement machine and sweepstakes terminal device operators and distributors. According to DeWine the legislation also includes requirements for the machines to undergo a pre-play certification process.


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