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Business expects video gaming to attract customers
Mavericks Country Bar & Grill in Mundelein will have five video gaming machines. | Buzz Orr~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: November 9, 2012 9:51AM
MUNDELEIN — Mavericks Country Bar & Grill in Mundelein already has plans in place to install video gaming machines to give customers another entertainment option — and potentially pull in more revenue.
Chris Hintz, owner of the nightclub located at the intersection of Route 176 and Route 60/83, will have five games in a small hub just off the dance floor.
Licensing and installation could take a month at the 21-and-over establishment.
Hintz and club manager Al Odle said they will make enough money on the games to cover the village and state fees, but the machines will generate more income by supplementing the club’s main service.
“For the guys who aren’t as talented at dancing as their wives, this gives them something else to do,” Hintz said. “We already have a game room with pool tables, darts and bags. If our customers need a break from dancing and 10 minutes at a video poker machine keeps them in here long enough to bump into another friend and dance some more, then it did its job.”
Mavericks draws patrons from Lake County, Chicago and as far away as Milwaukee, Odle said.
“Country western dancing is a very specialized hobby,” Odle said. “For some people, having a few extra things to do might help them commit to the trip.”
Odle and Hintz don’t believe video gaming will jeopardize the business’s reputation.
“We’re already trained to cut people off if we feel they’ve had enough alcohol,” Odle said. “Video gaming is no different. The law requires we have someone nearby supervising and we plan to have our bartenders keeping an eye out.”
According to Assistant Village Administrator Mike Flynn, the village anticipates receiving between $45,000 and $60,000 a year in video gaming proceeds from as many as 10 establishments.
While approving the ordinance 4-3 on Oct. 22, village trustees amended the original proposal so that establishments with ATMs cannot apply for a license. Similarly, only full-service bars and golf course venues can receive a license.
The board also decided to institute a $250 annual application fee per business, with an additional $150 charge per machine.
Mavericks is in the process of removing its ATM.
