The economy has claimed another victim when it comes to the world of electronic bingo gambling — the city of Tarrant.
While the majority of City Council members as well as the mayor claim electronic bingo gambling is not something they want, an ordinance regulating it was adopted 5–1 Sept. 1. Annette Dunner cast the one dissenting vote.
Under the new ordinance, it costs electronic bingo gambling facilities an annual business license fee of $15,000, plus $100 per month per machine, to operate. The monthly machine rate will increase to $200 Jan. 1, 2011. And each business must pay for a minimum of 500 machines no matter how many the facility is operating.
Businesses wanting to operate only paper bingo pay an annual $250 business license fee.
It is the only option to deal with the current economic crisis in the city, said Mayor Loxcil Tuck, noting Tarrant’s reserve fund has been depleted.
“In an attempt to head off the laying off of employees and cutting services to you our citizens, we will be voting on some issues that we would rather not do. But so far, we have not been able to find other solutions,” she said during the Sept. 1 City Council meeting prior to the vote.
Tarrant resident Bill Camp said he is opposed to the ordinance.
“I think it’s going to open the flood gates,” he said. “I don’t think it will save the city.”
Steve Jones agreed.
“One of the last things we want to do is lay people off, and I don’t know that anybody has the answers but gambling is a minus,” said Jones, also a resident of Tarrant. “Social services will have to be increased because addictions will increase and crime will increase,” he said. “When these people have lost everything, what are we going to do?
“If we open up this city to gambling, it is going to hurt every single person in this city. I don’t want to carry the curse of gambling.”
Councilwoman Kristi Taylor said she struggled with electronic bingo gambling as a means to the end of finding revenue for Tarrant.
“We are struggling to keep our lights on, but we have got to find a way to generate revenue,” she said. “We would much rather not look at bingo … but looking at the revenue … I [did] vote for it.”
The council turned to electronic bingo gambling as one means of generating revenue for the city early this year, said Tuck, a member of Central Baptist Church, Tarrant.
After Birmingham Judge John Amari introduced the mayor and council to the concept, they asked the city attorney, Benjamin Goldman, to draft an ordinance. (Amari also introduced the town of Argo in St. Clair County to the concept in late 2008. Another town struggling financially and seeing electronic bingo gambling as an answer, Argo passed an electronic bingo gambling ordinance in May but has yet to work out a way to legally operate the games. The debate has caused much division and turmoil in the town. Read more about this at www.thealabamabaptist.org.)
Goldman looked at state law and other electronic bingo gambling ordinances in the state carefully and added a new level of restrictions not found in other ordinances, Tuck explained. In Tarrant’s electronic gambling facilities, no food can be sold, there can be no alcohol on the premises, facilities cannot be open on Sunday and there must be a security guard on duty at all times. The area where these facilities can be built is restricted to the general business zone off the main highway (Highway 79) and the buildings must be at least a quarter mile apart.
“There will not be one on every corner,” Tuck said, noting that with these restrictions, the most gambling facilities the city can have is two.
Tuck, who said she is open to suggestions for other ways to raise revenue, believes Tarrant’s electronic bingo gambling ordinance is strong enough to withstand the possible negative side effects like increased crime and diminished property value. She also believes gambling operations will attract new businesses such as restaurants.
“We (the mayor and the council) love our community, too,” Tuck said. “We wouldn’t have done this if we thought it would hurt the community.”
Business licenses for operating an electronic bingo gambling facility will be managed through the city clerk’s office, and the Tarrant police will enforce the rules and regulations imposed on these facilities.
Goldman and Tuck both said they do not anticipate a need for new city employees to manage and monitor these facilities. In fact, they both said they do not anticipate much interest from gambling businesses because of the restrictions.
However, Tuck confirmed there is already one individual or business considering opening a facility in Tarrant. Under the new ordinance, that business could be official as soon as Sept. 21, the date of the next City Council meeting, because “licenses have to come before the City Council,” Goldman said.
He also noted that because Jefferson County has a law legalizing charity bingo operations, “the city does not have the right to deny bingo [licenses].” Because of this, it is in the best interest of Tarrant to regulate bingo operations through an ordinance, he said.
But other cities in Jefferson County such as Pleasant Grove and Pinson (see story, this page) have a different view of charity bingo and the options they have for controlling the type of bingo played.
Another reason for implementing an electronic bingo gambling ordinance in Tarrant is safety, said Councilman Tommy Bryant.
“We have a lot of little [senior adult] ladies who travel to Walker County to play,” he said. Driving through wooded areas at night that are far away from home is not safe for them, he explained.
“This is protection for the elderly people of our area,” Bryant said, noting the facilities in Tarrant would be safe because of the security guards and would prevent excess driving on the part of the customers.
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