West Northamptonshire Council has approved plans submitted by Dominic Rossookh to open a new two-storey, 24-hour AGC in a former NatWest building on Daventry High Street.

Though the authority had been one of 48 recently writing to DCMS for greater powers to oppose gambling premises, councillors dismissed local opposition to green light the plans.

“The development will create around 25 full-time and 20 part-time positions,” reported East Midlands Business Link. “Plans include a ground-floor gaming area focused on poker, with slot machines and lower-stakes roulette, alongside a bar, dining space, lounge, and seating for live sports.”

Rossookh is the former owner of Aspers Casino in Northampton, and submitted plans to convert the vacant bank premises earlier this year. However Daventry Town Council refused permission, citing the “potential effects on the health and wellbeing of vulnerable communities.”

More than 60 objections from residents were also registered before the West Northamptonshire Council meeting on 9 September, which overruled Daventry Town Council’s refusal.

According to the Northampton Chronicle, Rossookh “stressed that the entertainment venue is specifically poker-based, which tends to attract enthusiasts of the game from a wider area, and is ‘not intended to operate based primarily on passing trade or feature ‘games’ of pure chance.’”