Big, Bad and All About Bingo!
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Berkeley bingo hall may be shut down
0This article originally appeared here and is written by Doug Oakley.
Owners of a large concrete building on San Pablo Avenue at Gilman Street in Berkeley likely will lose their permit to run charity bingo games at a site described by one official as “an illicit gambling operation.”
The council will vote on a resolution at its Nov. 16 meeting to revoke the permit of the George F. McDermott and the McDermott Family Limited Partnership to use their 10,000 square-foot-building at 1284 San Pablo Avenue for bingo.
In July, the city shut down a charity bingo operation running out of the San Pablo building that officials estimate brought in at least $10 million in revenue from July 2009 to July 2010.
Officials have no evidence that the bingo game, working under the charity Youth Actors Company, ever donated any of the profits from the estimated $10 million to a charity.
“Twelve eighty four San Pablo Avenue wasn’t a bingo hall, it was an illicit gambling operation,” said Berkeley Code Enforcement Supervisor Gregory Daniel.
City and state laws require bingo halls to contribute any profits to charities. In Berkeley, those charities are required to have offices and do their work out of the same location as the bingo games.
Neither the owners of the building nor any neighbors showed up to a public hearing Nov. 9 to talk about the permit revocation.
The owner of the building was not available for comment Wednesday.
But during a Sept. 23 hearing before the Berkeley Zoning Adjustments Board a representative of the owner, Frank Ennix, said the owner was aware of “transgressions” at the bingo hall, but that the landlord could make sure “that those who are operating it see to it that the funds go to the Berkeley community.”
Ennix declined to comment on the possible closure Wednesday.
The board was unmoved and recommended the City Council take away the permit.
For the last 24 years, charity bingo has been the business inside the building, but according to a city report, it’s not likely any money went to any charity organizations or benefitted in any way from the crowds who came from as far away as Reno to play there.
Since 1986, 35 non profit organizations have run bingo out of the San Pablo hall.
The city report said “we have found no record that any of the above nonprofit bingo operators maintained offices at the bingo facility nor has staff found any record that they used the bingo facility to perform the duties for which the non profit was created.”
When the City Council votes on the resolution to revoke the permit of the building owners Nov. 16, future bingo parlors will be better regulated, Daniel said.
“We have a new ordinance in Berkeley that says any non profit that wants to operate bingo will have to show it is a qualified non profit that has been operating in Berkeley for at least 12 months,” Daniel said.
“Your records will show a tenant history in Berkeley, some sort of activity there and we may very well do a site visit to prove it.”
In addition to not donating to charity or housing charity offices in the bingo hall, the building’s owners had a variety of other violations including charging too much rent, allowing bingo operators to award prizes of over $250 and not keeping a list of winners, the report stated.
In the September hearing before the city Zoning Adjustments Board, owners of a restaurant across the street testified that they had observed “rampant drug dealing” and “near riots” in the parking lot off and on for at least the last 10 years.
In the report, Berkeley police confirmed their “descriptions of the problems with drugs and late night noise at the facility.”
Victim, witnesses describe panic during bingo hall shooting
0Michael D. Abernethy / Times-News
GRAHAM — The victim of a shooting inside a bingo hall last summer described years of abuse in an off-and-on relationship with her ex-boyfriend and accused shooter Neal Douglas White during the first day of testimony Tuesday.
After more than an hour of testimony, Jessica Bonita Stephens, 25, told the jury she believes White, 31, meant to kill her on July 12, 2009, when he shot her multiple times during a bingo game at VFW Post 10607 on West Webb Avenue in Burlington.
“”When he started shooting me, being the mother of his children, I never thought it would come to that. I feel like if that other lady hadn’t got shot, he’d have just kept on shooting me,” Stephens said. “When people hollered out for that other lady, I think that pretty much saved my life.”
White is charged with attempted first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury.
Stephens was shot in her left and right thighs, near her hip and on her arm, she and a surgeon testified Tuesday. The other woman — Betty Walker Garner, then 77 — was shot when the handgun White used in the shooting jammed and misfired, witnesses said. She was shot in her upper leg while she hid under a table, she said in statements admitted to court.
In opening statements, defense attorney David Remington argued that White did not intend to kill Stephens that day. While selecting jurors, Remington asked them if they believed a person could use a gun to harm someone but not kill them. White admits to pulling the trigger that day but did not want to kill her. Remington will ask the jury to find him guilty of lesser charges than attempted murder.
Alamance County Assistant District Attorney Craig Thompson will try to convince the jury that, after years of a troubled relationship with Stephens, White entered the VFW post bent on shooting and killing the mother of two of his children.
The remainder of the article can be found by clicking the link below.
Robbers hold up Milwaukee church bingo hall
0This is a repost of an article from the Milwaukee, Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. The original article can be found here.
More than 100 players scramble as gunmen enter
Aug. 13, 2010
By Jesse Garza
Masked, armed robbers terrorized players at a south side bingo hall Friday night when they stormed into the hall and began demanding women’s purses at gunpoint, witnesses and police said.
The robbery was reported shortly after 9 p.m. at the bingo hall for St. Rafael the Archangel parish at S. 31st St. and W. Lincoln Ave., said 2nd District Police Lt. Phil Henschel. No one was injured during the incident, which involved multiple robbers and multiple victims, Henschel said. The robbers escaped with an undetermined amount of cash, and police were searching for them late Friday, Henschel said.
More than 100 players were in the hall when the robbery took place, witnesses said.
Witnesses said as many as three robbers wearing Halloween masks stormed into the hall shortly after 9 p.m. and at least one was armed with what appeared to be a handgun. One woman who had not played bingo at the church hall in years said one of the robbers put a handgun to her daughter’s face before grabbing her purse and fleeing.
“Everybody was jumping up and getting down under the tables,” said Carolyn Townsend, 75.
Verdine Acosta, 55, said she saw several of the robbers approach from the back of the hall.
“The caller yelled to the people in the office to lock the doors and call 911,” she said.
Lisa Moonen, 45, said a woman seated next to her collapsed to the floor as other players began screaming and running toward the doors.
“It was really scary. Everyone in the place was shaking and screaming,” Moonen said.
Underground Rebel Bingo Club
0A British Bingo Sensation Looks for a Home in New York
The above link takes you to a New York Times article about a new way that bingo is being played. Definitely NOT your Grandma’s Bingo game! Tell us what you think of the idea in the comments. Also, if you have played let us know your thoughts as well!
The group has a website as well. You can find it here: www.rebelbingo.com
Paper bingo still a big draw at Piedmont hall
0This article was originally posted on The Birmingham News website. You can click on the link to read the article on the website if you would like.
Paper bingo still a big draw at Piedmont hall
By VERONICA KENNEDY The Birmingham News
The 80,000-square-foot building is quiet as a library, despite the 400 or so people seated at long rows of folding banquet tables, squares of paper spread out in front of them and an arsenal of ink daubers at hand.
A baritone voice calling out letter-and-number combinations pierces the silence with a slow rhythm.
A light blue smoke hangs in the air. Bingo – the old-fashioned paper variety – and cigarettes seem to go together.
Welcome to Piedmont Bingo, the center of activity on a hot summer Saturday in this northeast Alabama town, where buses, vans and cars bring bingo players from throughout the Southeast.
It may not seem like a destination to most people, but for some gaming enthusiasts, the bingo hall is the place to be on any given Saturday. This is among the largest paper bingo game sites in the Southeast, according to Fred Warner, Piedmont Bingo’s manager. The hall, which is only open on Saturdays throughout the year from 2 until about midnight, can seat about 3,000 players comfortably, Warner said. On occasion, the crowd has swelled to 2,000.
On Saturday, five buses and several vans brought about 300 people from cities in Georgia. Another 100 or so drove from nearby towns. All were intent on winning.
The $40 buy-in got each person 18 cards. As the night progressed, cash prizes would be awarded in amounts ranging from $700 to $3,500. By the end of the evening, a total of $19,000 would be handed out, as it is every week, according to Warner.
Don’t be fooled: It’s gambling, but it’s the kind of gambling that is allowed in Alabama. The hall operates under the requirements of state law, which allows paper bingo for charity, and the local laws in Piedmont and Calhoun County.
“This is a good, clean business,” Warner said. “It just has to be run right.”
The snack bar offers fried chicken, burgers and sandwiches. What you won’t find: beer, wine or other alcoholic beverages.
Clearly, the people in the hall are serious when it comes to the game. The silence in the cavernous hall is broken only by the caller and the occasional shout of a winner. After a minute or so of chatter, silence falls again.
Piedmont Bingo is run by Chapter 502 of Vietnam Veterans of America, based in Anniston. The 25 people who regularly work there on Saturdays are said to be volunteers. Some cook, some call, some walk the floor to assist players.
“The Vietnam Veterans local chapter gets 10 percent of the gross – that’s off the top before any prizes, any expenses,” Warner said. “Then, the city gets $4 per person who comes in. Of that, $2 goes to the city and $2 goes to Piedmont City Schools.”
That means on any given week, the veterans group will receive a minimum of $1,600 while the city and schools will get $800 each. Over a year’s time, that adds up to more than $83,000 for VVA and more than $41,000 each for the city and the city schools, based on an average weekly attendance of 400.
Throughout the evening, players buy more cards at a fee of $1 for three. That money also goes into the coffer. Whatever money is left over is used by the local VVA chapter for expenses, such as rent and utilities, supplies and prizes.
There has been no noticeable increase in attendance since electronic bingo halls were shut down across the state, said Warner, who would like to add electronic bingo to the mix in Piedmont.
But he knows he still would have to offer the paper option since regulars like Richard Dodd of Rome, Ga., simply don’t like the electronic version.
“We enjoy the paper bingo,” Dodd said. “I’ve played the machines, and I don’t like it. Paper is easier to keep up with; I would probably quit coming if it went to the machines.”
Dodd, 75, and his wife, Nancy, 69, take a van to Piedmont almost every Saturday. On this day, neither of the Dodds has won a game, but they say they’ve tallied up more than $12,000 in winnings since playing at the hall.
Nancy Dodd said they usually spend about $100 every week.
Another regular visitor is Constance Wilson, 52, a nurse who lives and works in Villa Rica, Ga. She is a native of Birmingham and said she enjoys electronic bingo but she prefers the paper version. She rides the bus to Piedmont almost every week.
“I’ve been coming here about three years,” Wilson said. “Some friends told me about this place, and I’ve been on the bus ever since. This is very good bingo.”
Wilson said she spends $200 to $300 every week, and she wins enough to make her happy.
A casual observer can tell that most players are in the retired category. Warner said most of the hall’s clients are on a fixed income, and Nancy Dodd said the number of players dwindles from the beginning of the month to the end.
Warner said the hall has felt the effects of a weak economy, rising gasoline prices and the increase in popularity of electronic bingo. He said the hall would do better all around if electronic bingo were added.
“It doesn’t make any sense at all for Alabama to not have legalized gambling,” Warner said. “There are 39 states with legalized gambling. If gaming is regulated properly, everybody’s situation improves.”
Churches worried about what casinos will mean for Bingo games
1This article was originally posted on the RevereJournal.com website
Churches worried about what casinos will mean for Bingo games
Thursday, July 15, 2010
By Seth Daniel
If casinos get their cha-ching, then local church Bingo games fear their cards may suffer a blackout.
Speaking rather frankly, Father Michael Guarino of St. Anthony’s Church told the Journal this week that he has some “very serious concerns” about the effects of a casino on his church’s weekly Bingo night.
“To be honest, I do have some concerns about this,” said Guarino. “Maybe it’s unfounded, but if you have a casino close by, people will only come so often and players only have so much they will spend. Bingo is very important for us to meet our budget. People may choose to go to the casino instead of our Bingo.”
Oddly enough, in the often-reported debate on casino gaming, church Bingo has been largely omitted – if not ignored – in the discussion.
Packed House
On any given Monday, the parking lot at St. Anthony’s is packed with vehicles.
Inside, the church basement is set up with tables running long ways. There are tables on the stage, tables in the alcoves and even tables up front by the number caller.
At those tables are more than 500 people a week, all of them playing Bingo with the hopes of winning some money, and with the goal of socializing with friends and other parishioners.
Players come from Revere, of course, but many also come from out-of-town. There are regulars from Lynn, Danvers, Peabody and Chelsea.
Church volunteers scurry around the floor helping these players get set up, collecting their money, selling raffle tickets and checking winners.
“N-43, N-43,” calls Father Mike from up on the stage.
He calls a few more numbers and, suddenly, an experienced player yells out the magic words, “Bingo.”
After checking the card, the woman who won takes around $300 in winnings.
“That’s a good lollipop,” calls out Father Mike.
It’s all part of a sub-culture that has existed for decades, beginning sometime in the 1930’s when churches began looking to Bingo – or Beano – for fundraising dollars.
Nowadays, Bingo games fall under the purview of the State Lottery. Officials at the lottery said that they do regulate and tax the games. Any recognized charity can get approvals and a license to run a game.
State laws govern who can play, when the games can be offered, and what prizes can be awarded. Occasionally, regulators come out to check up on how the game is running, they said.
Once a week at St. Anthony’s, young people, older people, rich people and poor people play alongside one another.
They socialize.
They have fun.
They try to win.
More than anything, though, the church stays on solid financial grounds, especially at St. Anthony’s where they run one of the largest Bingo games in the surrounding area.
Severe Budget Buster
With some major competition possibly opening up down the road – and maybe even offering Bingo games (Foxwoods offers a very popular Bingo game) – that subculture could disappear.
More importantly, the revenue to the church could disappear.
“It will affect our budget very severely,” said Guarino. “We run on a shoestring here, though many might think St. Anthony’s is this wealthy church, but we just barely make it. I just met with my Finance Committee and for 2009-2010 we’re $16,000 in the red.”
And that’s with Bingo, he said.
He estimated that Bingo brings in around $165,000 a year to the church, which is some 20 percent of their budget.
He said that their game already took a hit a few years ago when the city and state passed new laws banning smoking inside the building.
“Obviously I wouldn’t want to advocate smoking or anything, but we had probably 20 to 25 percent of our players leave when that happened,” he said. “There are just some people who want to gamble and smoke at the same time and they’ll leave if they can’t. I know because I saw it firsthand.”
The only other Bingo game in Revere is at St. Mary’s on Washington Avenue, but that game is much smaller in size. Father Paul Aveni said he is not so worried about taking a hit on the Bingo.
“[A casino] will definitely have an impact on our Bingo,” he said. “Our Bingo isn’t as big as St. Anthony’s though. We don’t really depend on the income like they do. I’m not concerned. That’s sort of the icing on our cake, not anything we depend on.”
That’s not the story at St. Anthony’s, and probably also at several of the other big games in the area – such as the Lynn Knights of Columbus or the Everett Immaculate Conception Parish.
“I don’t know how many churches have Bingo, but certainly the ones that do will be affected [by a casino],” said Guarino. “We are concerned.”
To Stay or Go
Certainly the church thinks that they’ll be missing some players – and the money they bring in on a weekly basis – but what about the players.
Are they enticed by a casino?
A survey of the crowd this Monday at St. Anthony’s was a mixed bag.
Some were adamant about continuing to come to the church basement every Monday night no matter what happens at Suffolk Downs.
Others indicated they would be out of the St. Anthony’s game quicker than Father Mike could say “B-12.”
However, a good many said they think they would stay, but that with free food, drinks and other amenities at the casino – they might end up there more often.
“We like casinos,” said Dottie Fennell, a semi-regular player at St. Anthony’s. “I’d prefer a casino to this game.”
And when asked if she would regularly attend a casino at Suffolk Downs that had Bingo, she said enthusiastically, “Oh yes.”
Others from her table were also very enthusiastic about the idea.
However, long-time friends Linda Quinlan, Teri Lorette, and Rose Markos called the St. Anthony’s game their “regular Monday meeting” and their “therapy session.” They come weekly from Saugus and Peabody.
They said they like casinos and would probably attend a casino at Suffolk Downs, but not for Bingo.
“I would still come here,” said Quinlan. “I don’t think a casino is a bad idea, but Bingo is something different and it’s very social. You spend the night playing Bingo for a small amount of money and you get to visit.”
Said Markos, “This is our night out. At a casino, it’s just win, win, win. Here, it’s different. We should just give St. Anthony’s our money. We just come to see each other mostly.”
Marie Wall of Chelsea – another weekly player – said she didn’t foresee a mass exodus from the church game.
“A lot of people come for the camaraderie and they’re attached to a certain place or a certain parish,” she said. “They know if they go to the casino, they would be just one of many people – another number.”
But many wonder if such camaraderie would simply take a walk down the street, changing venues to a newer and nicer casino where there would be gambling, free food, restaurants, spas and free drinks.
Can There Be a Compromise
Mayor Tom Ambrosino sympathized with the churches, saying that they ought to have a talk with potential casino operators.
“They should go pay a visit to Mr. [Richard] Fields (Suffolk Downs owner), that seems to be what everyone is doing,” said the mayor.
Guarino said that he plans on taking a pro-active approach to the problem.
“We can’t afford to lose that Bingo,” said Father Mike. “I hope to maybe talk to the right people in the near future about this to see if we can’t get something done. I think we have an extremely valid point.”
In Austin, a Lawsuit Over “The Future of Bingo”
0
Courthouse News has the suit filed in Austin federal court: More than a dozen veterans and fraternal organizations, including VFW Texas and Dallas-based Amvets Dept. of Texas, Inc., are suing the Texas Lottery Commission and its commissioners over “the future of bingo.” Which is to say: Each of the plaintiffs holds a state-issued license that allows them to conduct charitable bingo. Only, with that license, which is granted under the Texas Bingo Enabling Act, comes this stipulation: Any money made from charitable bingo can’t be used to support political candidates (which they’re fine with) or “influence or attempt to influence legislation” (which they’re not cool with).
Because as far as these groups are concerned, it’s only a matter of time before Texas — which, says the lawsuit, “faces an unprecedented fiscal deficit estimated as high as $18 billion in the coming biennium” — legalizes all kinds of gambling, including bingo. (Matter of fact, on July 8 the Texas House Committee on Licensing and Administrative Procedures does have on its agenda a discussion concerning “Gaming and the expansion of gambling in Texas.”) And if the state ultimately decides, yup, let’s git to gamblin’, it’ll involve going to the voters to amend the Texas Constitution. And these groups want to be able to have a say in the outcome, which laws prohibits at present:
Charities that rely on bingo revenues to support their activities are one of the groups in the greatest position to gain or lose, depending on the outcome of anticipated gambling legislation. If, for example, a measure is passed that permits casinos or similar facilities across Texas, but which leaves bingo halls alone, this would very realistically be the end of bingo in many parts of the State.9 On the other hand, bingo and the charities it supports could greatly benefit if the charities were permitted to offer additional types of games as part of a proposed gambling bill. Therefore it is no exaggeration to say that the life of Texas charitable bingo is on the line during the next legislative session.
This article can be found on the Dallas Observer website here and is authored by Robert Wilonsky
Olive Branch bingo hall’s fate bleak after closure
0This article comes from the Clarion Ledger. It was written by Laraye Brown.
The Olive Branch bingo hall that funded a Ridgeland-based charity closed Wednesday, and it’s unclear if it will ever reopen.
The state Gaming Commission Thursday refused to renew the bingo license Fine Arts Institute of Mississippi used to operate Boxcar Bingo, its primary funding source.
FAIM executive director Bill Murphy is vowing to fight the commission’s decision.
Founded in 2001, FAIM supports fine arts in Mississippi, funds college scholarships and hosts free concerts.
Murphy said 17 people will lose their jobs with the closure, and he won’t be able to fund the charity’s work.
“The responsibility of the commission wasn’t to pass judgement over the value and benefit of the charity,” commission chairman Jerry St. Pe said. “We were only ruling on whether or not the bingo operation was operating in accordance with the regulations.
FAIM’s actions have run afoul of the commission, which regulates bingo operations, and the secretary of state’s office, which regulates charities. Both point to problems with its spending, including a decision to spend money that was supposed to go to the charity on a reporting program for the bingo operation.
There are also complaints about FAIM paying Madison County Supervisor Tim Johnson to lobby lawmakers to reduce the percentage of bingo proceeds that must go to a charity.
Larry Gregory, executive director of the Gaming Commission, said his staff would go to the bingo hall to make sure it wasn’t operating.
The commission denied the license in October. FAIM appealed. After a January hearing, the examiner last month agreed with the commission.
FAIM is also waiting to learn the results of a March 2 appeal hearing with the secretary of state’s office.
Murphy is the highest paid executive director of a bingo-funded charity in the state, an investigator with the secretary of state’s office testified during that appeal hearing.
Although records show the FAIM board approved a $155,000 annual salary for Murphy, FAIM attorney Eric Hamer said his client actually earns $145,000.
Between 2006 and 2008, FAIM spent $64,090 on charitable services, according to the secretary of state’s office.
At the hearing, Hamer said FAIM spent more than $200,000 last year on charity.
FAIM could file for an injunction to try to reopen the bingo parlor during the appeal process. FAIM depends on that funding.
“None of our programs are going to be sponsored right now,” Murphy said Thursday.
Bingo! Gaming halls a community gathering place
0Here is a link to an article about bingo in Michigan. It is from the Holland Sentinel. http://www.hollandsentinel.com/feature/x427968702/Bingo
Article is about the decline in bingo and that bingo halls are a community gathering place. It looks like Michigan is going smoke free in public places on May 1st.