A plan to locate 150 temporary slots at Newton Square Bingo Hall in exchange for a million overhaul of the site is not likely to meet construction deadlines and the city of Surrey is seeking to remove the slot machines.
Surrey’s council unanimously passed a motion by Mayor Dianne Watts that asks for a review of the project and recommends asking B.C. Lottery Corp. to remove the machines.
The slot machines, installed in 2012, were supposed to be temporary while negotiations for a proposed South Surrey casino were underway. That project, however, was rejected by the city last year.
Gateway Casinos and Entertainment, which owns Newton Square, was also required to do a $20-million refurbishment of the Newton site.
“There were some specific timelines in terms of construction starts and completion,” Watts told the Canadian Globe and Mail newspaper. “Because construction has not yet started on phase one or phase two, those temporary slots need to be removed.”
The slots have brought controversy as Newton Square is located in a high-crime area that has been in the public spotlight recently.
A spokeswoman for Gateway told the Globe and Mail that permitting issues with the city have caused delays.
“We are diligently pursuing this redevelopment, but with these permits still pending, we are kind of in a holding pattern,” Gateway spokeswoman Tanya Gabara said. “We do own Newton Square mall and we are committed to redeveloping the whole mall.”
She said Gateway hopes it can work with the city to get negotiations back on track.
