Planned mega gaming venue canned after club announces closure in Tokoroa
Friday, 9 November 2018
A new mega gambling venue planned for Tokoroa has been abandoned after a club involved in the merger announced it was shutting down.
More than 45 people in the South Waikato town are set to lose their jobs after Pockets 8 Ball Club announced on Thursday evening it would close and go into voluntary liquidation.
The wind up will result in the closure of Pockets 8 Ball Club, Pockets Pool Lounge, Pockets Central Wine and Coffee, the club said in a statement.
The club had planned to merge with The Olde Establishment, and the Putaruru District Services Memorial Club to establish a new super venue with 30 pokie machines in the heart of Tokoroa's CBD.
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The move garnered opposition from locals including Feed Families Not Pokies Incorporated Society's Colin Bridle who has been petitioning to stop the venue from opening.
Club general manager Wendy Cook said in a statement the club has withdrawn from the merger and will close on December 10.
'The other two clubs that are subject to the merger, the Putaruru District Services & Memorial Club and the Olde Establishment are also expected to wind up as a result of the merger not proceeding.'
Merger plans had been underway since 2015 when South Waikato District Council signed off on site approval. An application was then made with the Department of Internal Affairs.
'The process has been a lengthy one. It has been a battle of attrition, which we have lost,' Cook said.
'The extended timeframe has put financial pressure on the club, meaning the only responsible thing to now do is to wind up and go into voluntary liquidation.
'The club merger process has also inflicted a huge emotional toll on the club's management and staff.'
Staff and family members were informed of the closure on Thursday evening. Several were found hanging around outside the premises on Friday still in shock.
Kotiau Joseph, who is the wife of the head cook at Pockets Central Wine and Coffee, said it was a sleepless night.
“My wife has been working for the organisation for about 17 years and she is broken because of this. It is the wrong time of the year for it to happen too.
“I work as well but to be honest we are not going to survive on one income because these days who does? We have got a mortgage to pay.
“It saddens me that because of the pokies there has been a snowball effect to the rest of the business. It was a massive uppercut to the face.'
Employee Lyn Petley, who has been working in the cafe for nine months, said she will be forced back onto a benefit.
“It is only a quarter to half or what I was earning here so I don’t know what I am going to do but I have got no option,' she said.
Fellow employee Lisa Pilisi, who works part time for Pockets as well as the Putaruru District Services Memorial Club, said the future of the Putaruru club was unclear.
“They are just going to keep going for as long as they can but obviously they won't be that much longer without financial support,' she said.
She said staff have been offered counselling.
Cook said the decision was not a result of the DIA declining the application as no decision had been made.
'The application is still with the Department and is still being processed. The club merger application was entirely lawful, having received all the necessary approvals from council and the Minister of Internal Affairs.'
Dr Lance O'Sullivan earlier slammed the pokie venue move, saying it was 'predatory behaviour' in a low socioeconomic community.
But Cook said the merger was a 'positive' move, resulting in the overall reduction of gaming venues and machines in the South Waikato.
The club had spent considerable money fitting out the new clubrooms set to house the new venue.
'The merger would have enabled Pockets to continue to support the local youth in various sporting activities, and would have ensured that our community had a warm and safe place for social interaction.'
Venues that hosted the gaming machines have been placed on the market, she said.
'The premises are likely to be purchased and turned into commercial pubs. If the purchase is made before June 2019, the gaming machine licences will be able to be restored as of right.
'The closure of the club is therefore unlikely to result in a reduction of the number of gaming machines in Tokoroa,' she claimed.
But contrary to her statement the building housing The Olde Establishment was sold four months ago. With it's closure 9 machines will go.
New owner Henry Clothier said there will no longer be a pub or gambling machines on site.
'The whole lot will be gone. There will be no pub and no gambling, it will be a new venture
'We are negotiating with people now to make something happen. It will be retail I think,' he said.
The club thanked its 1700 members who supported the club over its 19 years of operation.