A vacant bookies in the town centre will become a 24-hour adults-only arcade called ‘Little Vegas’.
Plans submitted to Reading Borough Council (RBC) turn the former William Hill betting shop at 134-145 Friar Street into an 18+ ‘adult gaming centre’, more commonly known as an amusement arcade, were approved last week.
The arcade was also recently granted a licence to allow gambling on site.
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Planning officers said: “The proposed use is appropriate for the town centre, with the premises located in what is considered a prime location for night life in the town.”
They also said they believe the arcade will not give rise to harmful levels of noise or anti-social behaviour given the nature of the use and the controls that would be put in place by the business.
Previously home to William Hill, the betting shop closed in late 2019 and the unit has been vacant since that time.
The arcade will be run by Chongie Entertainment, a new company which is based in The Bahamas but has an office in London, according to Companies House.
It was set up by Baltadzhiev Dobromi in October 2020 and has submitted several planning and licence applications for arcades including in Leyton, Wood Green, and Crawley.
Similar plans from Chongie Entertainment in Leyton have been rejected by Waltham Forest Council, after more than 600 people signing a petition opposing the plan to open from 8am to midnight every day.
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The Reading proposal, which goes even further, opening 24/7, was approved by the council despite concerns from licensing officers that “having another business trading throughout the night may increase levels of crime and disorder and public nuisance”.
However, officers said the Cumulative Impact Policy – which says that the town centre is already under stress from too many licenced premises and any new licence application in the area will be refused unless it demonstrates it would not undermine the licensing objectives – does not apply to licenced gambling premises.
Officers said there would now be three ‘adult gaming centres’ within close proximity of each other but this does not meet the criteria of a ‘cluster’ in the town’s Local Plan and so is considered acceptable.
There are two similar amusement arcades in Reading’s town centre – Golden Touch Amusements at 9 West Street and Admiral at 98 Friar Street.
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