After Advisory Referendum Vote, Downers Grove To Discuss Video Gaming

DOWNERS GROVE, IL — Now that Downers Grove voters have weighed in on the village's video gaming referendum question, the village will discuss the issue at a meeting slated for Dec. 3.

The referendum was an advisory referendum, the results of which are not binding. Village officials aim to use the results to "help guide and provide direction to the village council as it considers future actions concerning the desirability of video gaming in the village," according to an update on the Village of Downers Grove website.

Below are the DuPage County Clerk's Office's unofficial vote totals on the referendum question, with 100 percent of precincts reporting.

Yes: 8,673; 35 percent

No: 15,978; 65 percent

Below is how voters saw the question on their ballots:

Shall the Village of Downers Grove permit video gaming only for establishments holding (i) restaurant liquor licenses and located outside of the Downtown and (ii) club and recreational facilities liquor licenses, with restrictions placed on the number of licenses, the number of terminals, terminal configuration, terminal visibility, establishment proximity to churches ad schools, and with no allowance whatsoever for video gaming cafes, in the Village of Downers Grove, County of DuPage, State of Illinois?

The measure would have allowed for the issuance of 10 gaming licenses, calling for limitations that required video gaming terminals to be located in separate rooms and not to be visible from the outside of a building.

The issue of video gaming has been a polarizing topic in Downers Grove, with village officials having passed an ordinance in 2023 that would permit video gaming. After the referendum question was approved to appear on the ballot in the 2024 general election, the ordinance had been set to take effect Jan. 1, 2025.