Signature drive on for poker initiative

Business leaders have taken it upon themselves to push a local initiative that would remove poker establishments from residential villages and keep them along Saipan’s two main highways.

The Saipan Chamber of Commerce is currently collecting signatures that will put the “Third Senatorial District Initiative Petition for Local Law on Poker and Pachinko Machines of 2005” on the November 2005 ballot.

At least 2,500 signatures from registered voters on Saipan are needed before 4:30pm tomorrow—the deadline for submission of initiative petitions for this year’s general elections to the Attorney General’s Office.

Chamber president Alex Sablan reported that the business organization had gathered 800 to 1,000 signatures as of yesterday. He said he is confident that the Chamber would be able to meet its target before the deadline.

“By signing this petition, people are not voting for or against restricting poker establishments; they are merely saying that they want the question placed on the ballot. It is up to the voters to decide in November whether or not they want poker rooms in the villages,” said Sablan.

According to the Chamber, the initiative would limit poker establishments to only within Garapan, on Middle Road north to Hotel Nikko Saipan, and on Beach Road south to Pacific Islands Club up to Agingan Lane.

The measure would also ban poker establishments within 250 feet of any public or private school, Northern Marianas College, day care center, early childhood center, or church. It would not allow poker rooms near commercial laundry shops, grocery stores, and pawn shops.

Furthermore, the initiative would address the “aesthetic nuisance” caused by poker establishments by limiting signage to 2 feet high, 4 feet wide, and 8 inches deep. Signage must read “Game Room” and be fluorescent, backlit, fixed, and attached to the front of the game room facility. Illuminated neon or flashing signage would be banned.

House Bill 14-267, a more comprehensive version of the measure authored by Rep. Clyde Norita, is still pending in the House of Representatives.

In an interview, Sablan said the initiative was not meant to circumvent the legislative process, but merely seeks to provide an alternative means for the measure to be enacted in the event that the lawmakers fail to pass it.

“The Legislature still has enough time to pass the bill between now and November. But if they don’t, at least the voters can act on it themselves,” said Sablan.

He added that the Chamber had been in discussion with Norita for the past eight months about the measure. The idea of pushing it through the initiative process came up following discussions with various community groups and agencies, including the Department of Public Safety, Department of Finance, Marianas Visitors Authority, and the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa.