Despite pleas from Chuck E. Cheese, Lynnwood upholds gambling ordinance
Oct 2, 2012, 6:28 AM | Updated: 11:19 am
The Lynnwood City Council has upheld its gambling ordinance, which limits the amount of ticket winnings at the local Chuck E. Cheese restaurant.
The city council did not have enough votes (4 to 2) Monday night to overturn the mayor’s September veto.
Now kids will only get a maximum of four winning tickets per game, which may stifle their chances of collecting prizes. Cory Rimer, the General Manager of the Chuck E. Cheese in Lynnwood, tells KING-5 it will hurt their business.
“I would like to see families stay in the city of Lynnwood, for them not to have to leave the city of Lynnwood, and to not have to go to another business outside the city of Lynnwood,” says Rimer.
While the law might seem ridiculous, KIRO Radio’s Luke Burbank says it may actually be better for the kids with an itch for gambling.
“I can say from personal experience, if you were a kid like me, who had a lot of gamble in them, there certainly was part of your brain, some sort of synapse that was being stimulated by his kind of activity.”
Co-host Dave Ross wonders why the tickets, and subsequently the prizes, can’t be some sort of award based on skill.
“I didn’t see it as a game of skill. I saw it as a chance to take one token or one quarter and turn it into something big and amazing, like a giant stuffed animal or whatever,” explains Luke.
By the way, Luke says you will never win one of those 15,000 ticket animals.
