New ban coming on slot machines at Laundromats, car washes

New state regulations effective Feb. 1 prohibit new establishment of slot machines at Laundromats, car washes, liquor stores and restaurants without bars.

"In Nevada?" asks Dawn Miller, who was washing her clothes and playing the slots this weekend at a Duds 'n Suds Laundromat in Reno.

"We live in Nevada. What's the matter with them?" she said.

The Nevada Gaming Commission approved the new rules on Thursday.

The Laundromats and other newly restricted businesses will be allowed to keep any existing slots. Grocery stores, drug stores, convenience stores and bars will continue to be allowed to bring in new slot machines.

Augie Gurrola is the state gaming regulator who pushed for passage of limits on slot and other gambling machines at locations outside casinos.

"We're trying to curtail slot machines in every nook and cranny," said Gurrola, a member of the Nevada Gaming Commission.

"We're discouraging Laundromats, restaurants without bars, motel lobbies, liquor stores and car washes," he said.

In Nevada, it's fairly common to find slot machines in all of those locations.

"I don't consider it very drastic," Gurrola said. "But it is a change in direction."

The new regulations consider groceries, drug stores, bars and convenience stores to be traditional non-casino locations.

"We've said, in so many words, 'If you aren't applying in one of these four, you're discouraged from applying,' " said Gurrola, a Las Vegas resident.

"If you own a Laundromat and you have slots, you won't lose them. If you're going to expand your Laundromat business into another part of town, you won't be allowed to put slots in there."

Bradley Herndon owns Laundromats, two Duds 'n Suds locations in Reno, and opposes the regulation, even though he won't lose his gambling machines.

"Most businesses with restricted gaming licenses, it (gambling) may not be a huge part of their total business, but it's a huge part of operating profits," said Herndon, who also owns three bar-restaurants with gambling devices.

"It's significant in any restricted location."

Grocery stores and similar locations operate with restricted licenses, which allow a maximum of 15 machines.

Herndon has 15 machines at one Duds 'n Suds and 13 at the other.

"They've been chipping away at restricted locations," Herndon said of the commission's action.

"As a small businessman, I see a continuous process of business opportunities involving gaming being eliminated. The big guys are squeezing out the little guys."

Adam Earhart, a student at the University of Nevada, Reno, washes his clothes and plays the slots at Duds 'n Suds. The Reno native has grown up with machines.

"They've got them in gas stations, they've got them in grocery stores," he said. "It's a little strange going out of town and not seeing them."

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