Editor
An Ohio businessman is hoping to open a membership-based poker club in the small town of Van Wert, Ohio and wants to nip any potential legal issues in the bud. Jack Patel and his attorney, Robert Dove, petitioned the Van Wert City Council on Monday, July 28.
Similar social poker clubs have existed in other parts of Ohio for several years. However, Patel and Dove want to make sure they’re on the same page as the town when it comes to the law.
If they do successfully open the club, it would likely be the closest poker venue for players in nearby Fort Wayne, Indiana.
PokerScout contacted Dove for comment, but did not receive a response by publication deadline.
According to the Van Wert Independent, Dove told a Council meeting, “This is not a nightclub, no alcohol will be sold or allowed on the premises – this is a recreational club. It will be a private membership-based club that members can come and there will be board games, there will be poker, there will be chess and depending on the size of the location, there could be ping-pong or billiards.”
It appears the room will operate along the same lines as other social poker clubs in Ohio and elsewhere. Directly raking money from the games would make a poker game illegal under most states’ gambling laws. Therefore, the typical model for these businesses is to charge members a yearly or quarterly membership fee, plus daily seat rentals. Van Wert has a population of around 45,000, and the closest existing poker room is roughly 90 miles away.
Currently, Patel is still looking to secure a location for the business, so the opening date might be a while off.
Mayor Ken Markward seemed to have no objection, saying, “People don’t come up and ask us for permission to open a business typically.”
He also acknowledged that membership-based clubs are legal in the state and don’t need Council approval.
However, Ohio membership clubs operate in the same legal area as Texas poker rooms, which have occasionally run afoul of that state’s law enforcement. Ohio has generally been more open to gambling expansion, though the Governor has stated that he won’t approve online gaming, including online poker.
Dove is the Director and Chair, Gaming & Sports Betting Practice at the Kegler, Brown, Hill + Ritter law firm in Columbus, Ohio. According to their site, Dove represents local and national clients on individual and statewide gaming issues.
