Oswego looks at restrictions on future video gambling sites
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The Oswego Village Board is looking at options to regulate future video gambling sites in town.
The Village Board in May 2013 approved video gambling in Oswego. The number of video gambling establishments currently in the village was one of the topics in the municipal election in the spring.
Ryan Kauffman defeated incumbent Troy Parlier in the April 4 election for village president. Kauffman listed video gambling licenses as one of his top five concerns during the campaign. He said gambling licenses have “doubled in the village and even more were being approved every day.”
”Residents have encouraged me to do something about this,” Kauffman said to board members at a July 18 meeting. “The revenue is great but it’s more than just the revenue.”
Oswego has 12 gambling cafes and 142 video gambling terminals throughout the village at the moment, according to officials.
Video gambling generates approximately $400,000 in revenue annually for Oswego, officials said.
“I have nothing against gaming,” Kauffman said. “It’s about a balance. We want to make sure we are managing the perception. Oswego is a business-friendly community but also a family-friendly community. We don’t want the perception to get out there that we are Las Vegas East. That is my concern.”
Village trustees as a committee of the whole recently had a second round of discussions in as many months on the issue. Kauffman said he would like to see some sort of cap on video gambling locations in the village.
“That’s what residents asked of me,” Kauffman said.
The administration provided a series of options which include imposing a cap on the number of video gambling licenses at gas stations and convenience stores. Other options presented would impose a cap on video gambling cafes and change the approval process for licensing to require applicants seeking a license to go before the Committee of the Whole prior to final Village Board consideration.
The administration also presented options to restrict the distance between video gambling sites to “discourage clustering” of them close to one another. One proposal would have either a half-mile or a one mile minimum distance between video gambling sites.
Some trustees reported receiving complaints about temporary roadside flag signs and banners advertising video gambling in Oswego. Per village code, establishments are allowed to place temporary signs four times a year for a period up to two weeks, village officials said.
Trustee Tom Guist said there seems to be an excessive number of temporary signs in Oswego unlike other communities.
“I would personally be OK with getting rid of those. I have a hard time believing they generate big business,” Guist said. “The signage is a big part of the perception that residents have - that we have more of these businesses than they are comfortable with. I really don’t think the people I have talked to have a problem with going into a restaurant with a couple of terminals there. I think more so it is the signage and the perception they have of that.”
Guist said he would not be supportive of imposing a cap on video gambling facilities but said there is a reason to look at avoiding the clustering of gambling cafes.
”The gaming cafes are different than a business owner that wants to add gaming terminals to their business,” he said. “Addressing the signage would help the perception that we are open for every gaming business around.”
Trustee Kit Kuhrt suggested the village inform residents of the revenue that video gambling generates in quarterly newsletters.
”This is not revenue that comes from taxpayers,” Kuhrt said, adding it would give residents an understanding of how the revenue is applied to projects.
”I am not for capping this,” Kuhrt said of video gambling sites.
Trustee Karin McCarthy-Lange said “there are signs everywhere” because “gaming is everywhere” in the village. She said gambling in the village was an issue in the last campaign when she walked door-to-door to meet with residents.
“Residents said there are too many gaming establishments,” she said.
Oswego Village Administrator Dan Di Santo said staff was directed to follow-through on several areas related to video gambling, including providing crime data in relation to the activity. The trustees also want a review of the village’s temporary sign regulations.
Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
