Tuesday, June 4, 2024–7:21 p.m.
-David Crowder, WRGA News-
The Cave Spring City Council is the latest government body to approve an ordinance regulating coin-operated amusement machines.
The ordinance, which was approved Tuesday during a called council meeting, is similar to the one passed by the Floyd County Commissions, except for how violations are handled, according to City Manager Nick McLemore.
“A $500 application fee stays with it, just as they [the county] have done,” he said. “The only difference that we have is, of course, we don’t have an alcohol control commission, so anything we levy will come before the city council instead of an outside commission.”
The ordinance limits the number of machines to six per business. It also seeks to prevent loitering in establishments that have gaming machines, and requires that the machines must be in plain view, and not in a back room. There are also distance requirements from churches and schools.
“It conforms straight to our alcohol ordinance,” McLemore added. “So, all the limitations we have in that pass through to our COAM ordinance.”
McLemore estimates that there are currently 32 to 36 COAM machines at four or five locations in Cave Spring.
The Rome City Commission also passed a similar ordinance but without the $500 application fee. Rome does have an occupational tax that comes with getting a business license.
Council approves business license and fire inspection ordinances
Also during Tuesday’s called meeting, the council approved a business license ordinance.
“It will require business owners to submit proof of registration with the Secretary of State, providing professional licensing if they are required to have those,” McLemore told the council prior to the vote. “For the first issuance of a business license, it requires a public works inspection and then a fire inspection. The fire inspection, of course, would occur annually after that.
The council also approved an ordinance that will give the city the ability to handle its own annual fire inspections, as well as inspections for new or renovated commercial structures.
“This kind of came to us through Rome-Floyd Building Inspection,” McLemore said. “It was pretty much the option of hiring your own building inspection official and handling it in-house or doing fire inspections.”