Cary trustees reopen rules on video gaming: signage, kitchen rules and machine caps raised

Village of Cary trustees reviewed local video-gaming regulations during the Community as a Whole meeting on Sept. 16, 2025, focusing on machine limits, how gaming terminals can be displayed inside businesses, signage and whether on-site food preparation should be required. Staff outlined current municipal rules and trustees asked staff to draft possible amendments for future consideration.

The discussion matters because residents have complained about gaming visibility and signage at local establishments, trustees said, and because the village’s ordinance sets local rules beyond state licensing. Staff explained that the village currently follows the state maximum of six terminals per licensed establishment and enforces local requirements that were added after the 2013 ordinance, including minimum seating and floor-area ratios and restrictions on permanent on-site signage that advertises gaming.

Village staff summarized the main regulatory elements: Cary’s code currently allows up to six machines per state license; requires a minimum seating ratio of 10 seats per terminal (10:1); applies a 4-to-1 non-gaming-to-gaming floor-area ratio; requires that gaming terminals not be visible from outside the establishment and be within view of an employee over age 21; and limits permanent gaming advertising on-site (temporary window signs are permitted within the 20% window-coverage rule). Staff also noted a 2019 local change that established detailed standards for distinguishing a gaming café (where gaming is the primary activity) from a restaurant or bar.

"We generally limit the number of machines for establishments to a maximum of 6, which is what the state license requirements are as well," staff said in the presentation.

Trustees debated policy options. Trustee Waller, who said he oversees a property with terminals, cited statewide data and told the board: "Per terminal basis, the wagers, the terminal income is flat." Waller argued that adding more establishments would reallocate existing wagers rather than increase overall gambling revenue in Cary and suggested trustees consider a cap on terminals or a cap on the number of establishments allowed to host terminals.

Legal considerations featured prominently. Scott Euler, the village attorney, warned trustees that the village cannot adopt policy that improperly regulates content. "As with any matter that involves expression, speech, ideas, we as a governmental entity have certain limitations that we would have to work within if we're going to propose to regulate, and those relate to time, place, and manner," Euler said. "Content is generally a an issue we cannot regulate."

Multiple trustees proposed specific changes staff should draft and analyze: (1) tighten signage rules so neon or window advertising for gaming is restricted or prohibited; (2) require gaming terminals to be located in a fully enclosed room or otherwise isolated area visible to an on-duty employee, consistent with safety and fire codes; (3) require on-site commercial kitchen operations rather than off-site food partnerships for businesses seeking gaming terminals; (4) revisit seat-to-terminal and floor-area ratios to make gaming demonstrably ancillary to food and beverage service; and (5) consider limits on total terminals in the village and whether existing installations would be grandfathered.

Trustees also discussed enforcement of current rules. Staff and the liquor commissioner told the board that the liquor commissioner has authority to suspend or revoke gaming privileges for noncompliance; staff cited a recent case in which the gaming privilege was suspended after a business failed to meet the code’s commercial-kitchen requirements, and noted that a suspended location can be reinstated once it complies. Trustees asked staff to consider how any new ordinance changes would apply to existing businesses and whether grandfathering or phased compliance periods would be appropriate to avoid undue hardship.

The board did not vote on code changes at the Sept. 16 meeting. Staff were asked to draft specific amendments and to return with a legal memorandum analyzing First Amendment and state-law constraints, proposed language on signage and layout, and options on machine caps and grandfathering. Trustees signaled a preference for clearer rules that make gaming less visible to passing customers while not reflexively blocking restaurants from opening in Cary.

The item will return to a future committee meeting for follow-up and possible ordinance drafting.