Note: A correction ran for this story. It may be found here.
DANVERS — The owner of the Lucky 7 casino-style arcade in Gloucester plans to open a second location inside the Liberty Tree Mall on Independence Way.
If not for the need to construct handicapped-accessible bathrooms, said Rosalie Parisi, the owner and manager of Lucky 7 LLC, the arcade would have been open by the end of April.
The Gloucester location has been open for six years, but it could take another month for the Danvers location to open with its penny video slot games.
On Tuesday, selectmen granted approval of an application by Lucky 7 for 41 coin-operated amusement devices. The business had to go before the Planning Board for a special permit for the use in March 2011, Senior Planner Kate Day said.
The plan is to open in the same wing as the Registry of Motor Vehicles branch office, next to the former Brigham's Ice Cream location.
The town clerk's office said the arcade devices that Lucky 7 plans to use are approved by the state Division of Standards. They are licensed locally.
"It's an interesting concept," selectmen Chairman Dan Bennett said. "I hope it's successful."
The town receives licensing fees of $100 per machine.
The difference between a casino's slot machines and the games used by the Lucky 7 is "one is for entertainment purposes only," said Charles Carroll, the deputy director of the state Division of Standards, who referred questions to the state Lottery.
"Obviously, the remuneration in a casino is cash," said Lisa McDonald, a Lottery spokeswoman.
The Lottery does not have any oversight over these arcade games, McDonald said.
The Lucky 7 Arcade in Danvers will be for players 21 and older, and it will feature video games that mimic penny slot machines.
"They are not slot machines," Parisi said. "You have to hold, and you have to decide what to hold," meaning there is some skill involved, unlike a traditional slot machine that involves a simple pull of a lever or push of a button.
Parisi emphasized this was not a casino or an Internet slot cafe, where players can try their hand at online slots or video poker for cash prizes, which is illegal.
Lucky 7 is an arcade, no different than the Chuck E. Cheese's in the Endicott Plaza in Danvers and the Bonkers Funhouse Pizza on Lowell Street in Peabody that cater to children's birthday parties and have games that kids play to win tickets for prizes.
"It's a place for adults to go, and mostly my clients are elderly people," Parisi said.
According to the Lucky 7's website, players buy cards and play for pennies, which are credited or debited as the player wins or loses. If a player has $25 in credits at the end of the day, they can cash in for gift certificates or prizes. Many of the gift certificates come from local merchants and restaurants, and that helps drive the local economy, Parisi said.
The arcade also promises a place where seniors can go to meet and be with others.
"My mother is 90, and she has made friends," Parisi said.
Parisi and her husband, Sam, got the idea to open the Lucky 7 when they went to Florida in 2006 and visited an adult arcade a few times, according to the business's website. They then brought the idea to Gloucester.
Staff writer Ethan Forman can be reached at 978-338-2673, by email at eforman@salemnews.com or on Twitter @DanverSalemNews.
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