Long Beach, CA Gambling & Gaming: Card Room Licensing (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit required
- City Council or CUP, § 5.69.050
- Wagering
- strictly prohibited by definition, § 5.69.010(D)
- Investigation window
- up to 60 days, § 5.69.060(C)
- Minors
- barred unless with parent/guardian/adult 25+
- Permit transfer
- non-transferable to new owner or site
- Reapplication bar
- 1 year after revocation or denial
Summary
Long Beach permits public cardrooms only as amusement uses. Municipal Code § 5.69.010(D) defines a "public cardroom" as a place where the public plays cards "for enjoyment or amusement purposes only," expressly prohibiting wagering, and § 5.69.050 requires anyone operating one to first obtain a City Council permit or Conditional Use Permit.
A.Permit Required. No person shall carry on, maintain or conduct any arcade, public card room or public card table, bowling alley, billiard hall, pool hall or family billiard hall structure in the City without first obtaining either a permit from the City Council or a Conditional Use Permit issued by the Planning Commission or the City Council on appeal.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 52 Update 1 | City Charter: Supplement 5).
Full Breakdown
69, Amusements, treats public cardrooms alongside bowling alleys, billiard halls and arcades. 090 bars anyone under 18 from playing cards at a public cardroom unless accompanied by a parent, guardian, or an adult at least 25, on premises where the ABC license permits minors. 110).
Violations & Fines
Operating a public cardroom without a § 5.69.050 permit or CUP is enforced through the City's licensing machinery: the City Council can suspend, deny, or revoke the permit under § 5.69.100 for noncompliance, and § 5.69.040 authorizes police, health, planning, building and fire inspectors to inspect the premises at any time it is open, with obstruction of an inspection itself grounds for suspension or revocation.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Can minors play cards at a Long Beach cardroom?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Long Beach
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Card Room Licensing in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Los Angeles County handle card room licensing.