The state of Florida is home to several casino facilities, all of which are tribal run. There are no standard poker rooms in the state and many casino firms have been trying to work around the system to provide poker and other gaming options. Just recently, a report by the Miami Herald, stated that a new poker room may be in the works in Florida City after a loophole was found in the legal system.
The report states that an appeals court rules this past week that West Flagler Associates, the parent company of the Magic City Casino, is now eligible to obtain a summer gaming permit. This permit would allow for poker tables to be made available.
In the report, it states that that a loophole in state law says that West Flagler can obtain a jai alai permit and then operate just one jai alai game to be eligible for a poker room. After two years, the company would then be eligible for a slot machine license by the Miami Dade County.
The company would like to purchase property in Florida City and this would be assumedly to create more gaming property. The state apparently has loopholes within the gambling laws and these loopholes have allowed for the ‘gradual proliferation’ of gambling expansion in the past few years. Creative lawyers have been able to convince regulators and the courts to permit the offering of new games.
Casino firms continue to try and get into the southern Florida market and there are plans to see the gambling industry expand with a full scale casino of commercial quality but plans for this have been put on hold until 2015. It will be interesting to see if the operator will be able to offer the poker gaming or if the loophole will not hold up in the long run.
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