Oswego board deadlocks on early gaming license for Nash Vegas; directs staff to draft 6‑month downtown exception

The Village of Oswego Board of Trustees failed to approve an immediate video‑gaming license for Nash Vegas but voted to direct staff to return a downtown‑only ordinance change that would reduce the current one‑year waiting period to six months.

Board President Ryan Kaufman presided over the March 18 meeting where staff presented two options: adopt an ordinance granting Nash Vegas a license effective Aug. 2, 2025, or send a text amendment back to the board that would eliminate or shorten the one‑year waiting requirement for downtown Oswego and certain ancillary or nonprofit establishments.

Why it matters: Trustees said video gaming is a modest revenue stream for some restaurants and bars and argued the downtown TIF district needs businesses to remain viable. Opponents said the one‑year rule was part of prior negotiations intended to prevent stand‑alone gaming cafes and to ensure establishments were operating primarily as restaurants before adding gaming.

At the meeting staff member Tina explained the ordinance background and options under consideration. Nash Vegas owner Jonas told the board, “we need all the help we can get,” saying post‑COVID pressures and higher labor costs make gaming an important revenue source for small operators.

Freddy’s Off the Chain owner Mona, who spoke during public comment, told the board her application predated the ordinance change and asked to be grandfathered in. She said she submitted her paperwork before the one‑year rule and argued that “I should be grandfathered in like everybody else.” Tina clarified to Mona during the meeting, “the one‑year waiting period is not for the liquor license. It's only for the video gaming license.”

Trustees split along lines of competing priorities. Trustee Tom Geist and several trustees favored making a downtown exception—arguing the TIF district’s health and a recent downtown business closing argued for flexibility. Other trustees said the board had negotiated the one‑year rule as a compromise to limit the proliferation of gaming cafes and did not want to reopen that comprehensive discussion.

Votes and next steps: A motion to grant Nash Vegas a gaming license effective Aug. 2, 2025, was moved and seconded and then failed on a tie vote (yes: Trustee McCarthy Lang; Trustee Novi; Trustee Torres — no: Trustee Kerr; Trustee Johnson; Trustee Tom Geist). With the immediate license denied, the board later voted to direct staff to return to the April 8 meeting with a text amendment to reduce the one‑year waiting period to six months for Downtown Oswego ancillary and nonprofit establishments. The motion to direct staff carried (4 yes, 3 no) and will return to the board for formal consideration on April 8. During the meeting trustees also expressed general consent to consider a separate, specific grandfathering approval for Mona (Freddy’s Off the Chain) because her application predated the ordinance change; staff said a formal item for that would be brought back for April 8.

Discussion highlights - Supporters said gaming provides supplemental revenue that can help smaller, independent restaurants survive and argued that many standalone gaming cafes will shrink if the state expands online gaming. - Opponents recalled the lengthy prior deliberations that led to the one‑year waiting period and said it was meant to separate restaurants that add gaming from businesses primarily driven by gaming and signage concerns. - Staff noted ancillary and nonprofit licenses are not capped; the one‑year rule was a local requirement designed to ensure establishments were self‑sustaining before receiving gaming approvals.

What the board directed staff to do - Prepare a text amendment for the April 8 meeting that would reduce the one‑year waiting period to six months for Downtown Oswego ancillary and nonprofit establishments. The item will return for a formal vote on April 8. - Prepare a separate item on April 8 to address the grandfathering request from Freddy’s Off the Chain (Mona), who had applied before the ordinance change.

Provenance: topic intro and finish excerpts from the meeting transcript are below in provenance.

Ending: The board’s decision to send a downtown‑only amendment back to staff keeps the broader gaming ordinance intact for now while providing a path for a tailored downtown exception and a discrete grandfathering review for one applicant.