Schaumburg awaits more details on video gambling

Before Schaumburg officials even discuss the possibility of video gambling among themselves, they want to find out if village businesses recognize any positive aspects to it.

"We're in the process of conducting a survey of our restaurants and liquor license holders," Mayor Al Larson said Tuesday.

Response to the survey has been slow, however. In the two weeks since the survey went out, the village has received only eight responses from among the 90 businesses polled.

In addition, there are many questions that still need to be answered before the village board itself could effectively weigh the pros and cons of video gambling, Larson said.

The Illinois Gaming Board has yet to establish even the rules and regulations under which the machines would operate, he added.

"An argument could be made that restaurants are suffering and that video gambling would help them out," Larson said.

But on the other hand, there are moral questions attached to gambling that create the dilemma of whether the video machines would create more problems than they solve, Larson added.

At this point, the mayor doesn't even know whether the majority opinion of the business survey will form the basis of the village's stance on the issue.

As the topic has yet to appear on the agenda of a village board meeting, he hasn't had the opportunity to discuss this aspect of village business with the trustees to find out if they have any strong opinions of their own.

Such a conversation will likely follow a firmer explanation of the gaming board's rules and a more thorough response from Schaumburg businesses on their willingness to host the machines.