Village of Godfrey Board of Trustees
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GODFREY – Godfrey trustees are expected to vote on an ordinance next month setting new rules for video gaming licenses in the village.
The proposed ordinance would lower the number of video gaming licenses allowed in the village by one each time an establishment with video gaming goes out of business. This move seeks to prevent such establishments from transferring their gaming licenses to other entities, since the number of allowed licenses would remain the same under the current Village Code.
Last month, trustees agreed to send an item to consider the ordinance back to a committee formed in 2023 with members Trustees Sarah Woodman and Mike Fisher, who have been researching the topic and drafting a new ordinance. At Tuesday’s Village Board meeting, Mayor Mike McCormick asked for an update on their progress.
Village Attorney Bryan Dooling said he and both committee members met last week, and they expect to have an amended ordinance drafted by the end of this week. If so, that ordinance will appear on the agenda for the board’s Dec. 2, 2025 meeting – Dooling and Woodman said their intention is for the item to be passed in time to take effect by Jan. 1, 2026.
Woodman emphasized the complexity of the issue, but feels this ordinance is a step in the right direction.
“There are a lot of issues involved in getting to the right place on this ordinance,” Woodman said. “It’s not … cut and dry, but I think we agree [on] where we’re going – we know how the board feels, I think, just from prior discussion.”
For more details behind the proposed ordinance, see this related story on Riverbender.com. A full recording of the Nov. 18, 2025 Village Board meeting is available at the top of this story or on Riverbender.com/video.
