A full-fledged casino can only be located in 4-5-star hotels (for Kyiv – only 5 stars), country recreation complexes with five-star hotels and separate territorial gaming zones, the creation of which is still being worked on in the Cabinet of Ministers.
However, recently the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine published the first version of amendments to the current state building codes (SBC).
The key innovation in the proposed amendments to the SBC, which may affect the activities of gambling establishments, is the possibility of placing hotels and hostels in residential buildings.
At the same time, the new regulations do not mention a ban on the placement of casinos and slot machine halls in residential buildings.
In addition to hotels and hostels, the current version of the SBC prohibits the placement of veterinary clinics, veterinary consultation offices; public toilets; funeral homes; baths, saunas, including in built-in sports and health facilities; laundries and dry cleaners (except for collection points and self-service laundries with a capacity of up to 75 kg of linen per shift); stores with a total area of more than a thousand square meters, as well as production facilities and various specialized enterprises.
The draft of the first amendments to the State Construction Norms appeared on the Ministry’s website at the beginning of 2021 and, according to its paragraph 5.40, the hotel business is proposed to be excluded from the list of prohibited enterprises in residential buildings.
Read also: Five of the world’s most unusual underground casinos.
The ban on placing casinos and slot machine halls in residential buildings was also removed from this version. Despite this, some experts believe that even if the proposed amendments are approved, gambling operators are unlikely to be able to open casinos and slot machine halls in residential buildings.
The practice of opening illegal hostels in residential buildings remains widespread, so the changes to the State Construction Norms should solve this problem if they can be applied. Did you find the news interesting and informative? Want more of the gambling news online and stay updated on the events? Subscribe to our ‘Gambling News’ section and receive notifications about fresh publications. If you found this publication helpful and interesting, we recommend subscribing to online gambling insights to receive notifications about the latest updates and stay informed about current events.
