Play Meter

,
Ohio cities debate rules
for amusement game locations
By Bill Kurtz
"If these people weren't
allowed to play video
games, they might go
down to the corner and
buy 'grass' or go buy
porno magazines. I just
can't believe councilmen
are putting these games
in the same class as
alcohol and firearms."-
Shaker Heights operator
6
A public hearing to discuss licensing
regulations for video and pinball
games in the Cleveland suburb of
Shaker Heights, Ohio drew camera
crews from two local television
stations, several reporters and more
than 100 residents to a January
session.
The proposed legislation (which
was not to be voted on until the end
of January) would limit operation to
10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through
Thursday and 10 a.m. to midnight on
Friday and Saturday. The ordinance
would also impose a $100 fee per
machine and require businesses to
obtain a special use permit from the
city for more than one game.
The ordinance would also require
the games to be placed "in a position
where they are visible to the owner
of the business" who would have to
present a floor plan of his shop
before the special use permit is
approved, according to the city's
assistant law director. Violation of
any of these restrictions would con-
stitute a first degree misdemeanor
and result in the revocation of the
permit. The legislation would apply
only to amusement devices and
would not include jukeboxes and
vending machines.
The city council scheduled a dis-
cussion of the proposed ordinance
again at its next meeting on January
25 before taking a vote.
Shaker Heights now has about 30
video and pinball machines in nine
locations. The proposed ordinance
would cover only machines in
secondary locations where the
games are a convenience to cus-
tomers rather than in game rooms
(primary locations covered by a
separate ordinance), of which the
city has none.
One council member admitted
that having the restrictions apply to
businesses with more than one
game, rather than four or more
machines as originally proposed,
was done simply to get game
operators and store owners to come
in and express their views.
"Coin-operated video machines
are a fact of life. They're going to be
somewhere," Mayor Walter Kelley
told council, urging passage of the
ordinance because of what he called
"the difficulty of drawing the line
between primary and secondary
use. "
Marty Goldfarb, of All-State
Vending, mentioned the Mesquite,
Texas case which will be coming
before the Supreme Court, saying
the hours of operation proposed in
the Shaker Heights legislation would
restrict adult use of the games in
locations open past 10 p.m. week-
nights.
The owner of a delicatessen with
two cocktail videos in the bar area
told council he agreed with Goldfarb,
citing the difficulty of telling adults
they wouldn't be permitted to play
the games after 10 p.m. The city's
assistant law director responded by
saying that businesses in that
position could apply for a variance to
allow late-night operation of the
games in adult locations .
Opposed to porno
All of the complaints about the
games allegedly received by council
members concerned rowdy behavior
by youths at a 24-hour doughnut shop
with four video games. The owner of
the shop told council that the games
provide an outlet for customers. "If
these people weren't allowed to play
video games, they might go down to
the corner and buy grass or go to the
drugstore and buy porno magazines,"
he said. "I just can't believe council
members are putting these games in
the same class as alcohol and fire-
arms."
The chief of police told council
that he didn't see any correlation
between the games and residents'
complaints. "I'm not so sure in my
own mind and my own heart that the
PLAY METER, February 15, 1982