The City Council takes a pass on a tavern owner's call for social gaming to allow patrons to pony up for hands of Texas Hold 'em Sunday, December 26, 2004 ALICE TALLMADGE ALBANY -- All tavern owner Jim Mathews wanted to do was give his customers a chance to play Texas Hold 'em, the poker craze that has followers across the country glued to their TV sets or gathering in bars to cheer on tournament players.
What he got was a "Fold 'em" from a mostly poker-faced City Council.
Councilors voted 4-2 this month against Mathews' request. They would have had to pass an ordinance allowing social gaming, and council President Ralph Reid Jr. worried that other bars would follow suit.
"There would be card games all over the city," he said.
The town's police chief and other opponents cited concerns about unruly customers upset over losing streaks and the ability of officers to monitor the places where people would be playing cards.
Mathews said several customers approached him about playing Texas Hold 'em at his First Round Bar and Grill. The fast-paced, strategic game has become a national favorite. Bravo's "Celebrity Poker Showdown" and other networks have helped fuel the game's popularity. Enthusiasts also can play online.
Players are dealt two cards that only they can see. They then pick a hand using five community cards amid rounds of betting. City councilors are "way off the mark on this," Mathews said. "They think if they do this, a Pandora's box will open up. But I've done research on other cities, and nobody has said they've had serious problems."
Oregon state law allows counties and cities, by ordinance, to authorize social gaming -- defined as card games when the house makes no profit -- at public places and private clubs.
The result is a patchwork of local laws that reflect the state's ambivalence. Some residents and cities see the games as harmless fun. Others see them as incubators for trouble.
In Portland, a $500 permit gives a bar or a social club a chance to allow its customers to ante up. Bets are limited to a dollar and so are winnings.
"Usually that makes the license not so attractive," said Anne Holm, a regulator in the city's social games program office. She estimates that only about 10 establishments have permits.
Poker players can breathe easy in Burns, Oregon City, Coos Bay and Mount Angel. The cities all have ordinances that allow card playing at bars and social organizations once they get a license.
A customer could lawfully play in the Eastern Oregon town of Vale, but no business has sought the required license, said Vale City Manager David DeMayo.
In March, the Oregon Department of Justice shut down a long-running card game at the Keizer Eagles Lodge because the city had no law allowing social gaming. The City Council the next month allowed limited social gaming in private homes or in charitable, fraternal or religious organizations.
The Justice Department oversees games at charitable nonprofit groups, and the Oregon State Police monitor gambling at casinos. Local police are left to track social gaming in bars.
In Coos Bay, bar owners must obtain a permit for social gaming, and so do people who work there. The businesses pay a $150 quarterly fee per table and have a cardroom monitor.
"It's very simple," said Janet Gonzales, owner of Gussie's, where customers play blackjack and Texas Hold 'em if enough players show up.
She rejects the idea that poker players are more volatile or more likely to cause problems than those who play, say, video poker.
In 15 years, "I've never had a problem at a table. I hate to see them not allow it," she said. "It's just silly."
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