Groves considers ban, narrower restrictions on game‑room machines after Fort Worth ruling

Groves council and staff devoted a large portion of an Oct. 6 workshop to whether to amend Chapter 21, Article 3 of the municipal code to prohibit game rooms and gaming machines.

City staff reminded council the city had adopted a temporary moratorium on new game‑room permit applications earlier in the year and extended it while courts and the legislature considered related questions. City Marshal Marshall presented a 12‑month compilation of calls‑for‑service data for several addresses that host gaming machines and described incidents ranging from alarms and minor disturbances to one recent case in which a stolen vehicle was driven into a storefront at a newly opened location.

City Attorney Monk summarized the…