Property owner Sir Bob Jones has demanded the removal of pokies from a pub that is located in one of his commercial buildings. He does not feel that pokies set an appropriate tone for The Legal and made the removal of the games a condition when the hospitality company Trinity Group renewed its license.
Sir Jones states that he chooses his tenants very carefully, and he feels that offering pokies at his property would attract the wrong type of crowd. As such, he has requested that the Trinity Group remove all of the poker machines that are located in the pub. Managing director Jeremy Smith reluctantly agreed.
"We negotiated and decided we'd rather stay in the building and have a good relationship, rather than fight with the landlord”, Smith says. The pokies brought in an additional $5000 to $6000 in revenue for the property. The managers will need to find a way to compensate for the financial loss, but details have yet to be revealed.
However, there are plenty of bars, hotels and clubs across the country that do not host pokies and are able to make enough money to thrive. In fact, many pubs across the country are in the process of removing their pokies. They have found other ways to make money aside from benefitting from poker machine profits. Some popular methods are the introduction of club nights and special menus.
When it comes to gambling, Sir Bob Jones is not altogether opposed to poker machines. He believes that they are a cultural staple and can be a viable form of entertainment. However, he does not believe that the games are a suitable fit for the environment of the Legal House. As such, he supports the hosting to TAB games and pokies in other venues across New Zealand.
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