King's Lynn is potential new home for Moretons Casino Slots. (Image: eye35.pix / Alamy)

Planners in the remote English town of King’s Lynn are being asked to approve a plan that would see a clothing store transformed into a branch of the Moretons Casino Slots chain of adult gaming centers, that will feature many of the same amenities found at traditional casinos and casino sites.

Lynn News reports private developer Cornish Group Limited has filed a change of use petition with West Norfolk Council in hopes of being given permission to convert the two-story building into a gambling-friendly venue, offering those over the age of 18 the chance to enjoy a range of slots with jackpots of up to $630.

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Fiscal Friction

Consultations on the adult gaming center plan are due to commence on May 23, while Cornish Group Limited stated a rising number of retail units have been closing down in the Norfolk community of late owing to financial pressures spawned by the coronavirus pandemic and the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. 

The developer also detailed that its proposal could create as many as twelve jobs and would require only minor changes to the existing structure’s facade.

The site for the proposed Moretons Casino Slots has played host to a branch of the Blue Inc fashion retailer for over a decade but is set to be abandoned from later this month. 

The clothing enterprise situated in the central Vancouver Quarter of King’s Lynn sold its own range of products as well as items from Adisas, Polo Ralph Lauren and Mossimo but was unexpectedly shuttered for almost a year from November of 2019 as its parent struggled to overcome the impacts of an earlier bankruptcy.

Modest Makeover

King’s Lynn is home to approximately 43,000 people, while Cornish Group Limited revealed it would like to transform the ground floor into one of Moretons Casino Slots casino locations. It further explained that the second floor would be maintained as is and exclusively utilized as a storage space.

Adverse Assessment

In its planning application, Cornish Group Limited asserted the envisioned adult gaming center would help to increase retail footfall in and around the Vancouver Quarter. 

It additionally used its petition to criticize many of the United Kingdom’s current planning policies as not sufficient to keep up with town centers that have ‘changed significantly over the past 20 years as the market has responded to customers’ needs’.

“Development plan policy for many town centers is out-of-date and no longer fit for purpose,” read the petition from Cornish Group Limited. 

“The approach adopted is often insufficiently flexible to respond to the rapid change our high streets are now facing. Many development plans are based on out-of-date evidence and now even recently adopted plans need to be updated.”