Kosice Councillors Approve Partial Restrictions on Gambling within City Limits

Kosice, 13 November (TASR) - The Kosice city council approved on Thursday partial restrictions on gambling within the city boundaries, meaning that gaming rooms will only be allowed in buildings offering services and commerce, and casinos only in hotels, motels, and guesthouses. The generally binding regulation will take effect from the new year and will apply only to new licenses. According to the city, there has been increased interest from gambling operators in recent months. It doesn't rule out that this is also due to the adoption of generally binding regulations in other towns and municipalities that prohibit or otherwise restrict the regulation of gambling within their boundaries, and thus operators are looking for additional space to place slot machines in Kosice. Mayor Jaroslav Polacek considers Thursday's decision by the city council to be an important step, even though it doesn't represent a complete ban on gambling. "The first regulation in the city of Kosice is the first step. In the future, we'll see whether we'll change or improve it; it is an open process," he told TASR. Several councillors consider the approved proposal to be favouring one of the gambling operators. Dominik Karaffa claims that the city boroughs will lose gambling revenues as a result of the resolution, while one entrepreneur will increase their profits. "It is not possible for us, as elected representatives of the people, to adopt rules tailored to a specific entrepreneur or business segment. If we abolished gambling, it would be less discriminatory than restricting the operation of casinos to hotels alone," he said. am