At the core of Ponyville is Town Hall itself, a towering structure visible from pretty much anywhere shy of the Everfree Forest.  Decorated with banners and flags, it stands proud as a symbol of the town's solidarity.  Inside are tasteful offices for handling the mundane political tasks of running a town and a large, spaciously designed grand hall for special events.  Town Hall handles all of the governmental forces of Ponyville -- businesses, homes, travel, resources, and finances.  It also houses the Treasury Branch, which functions as Ponyville's Bank via connections to the royal treasury in Canterlot, though it really only sees use by the wealthy and business owners.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:09, Tue 01 May 2012.

< From Town Square >

 Ace waits by the large doors and adjusts his Poker Championship bracelet for a moment before giving the doors another knock. There has to be someone there right? What kind of Mayor wouldn't be at the Town Hall at this hour? What kinda one-horse town do they think they're running?

As Ace stood outside knocking on the tall doors to the Hall, there was no answer.  Another few knocks rendered the same result.  Wasn't anypony around?  His queries were answered soon enough though -- two official looking ponies with scrolls and gavels for Cutie Marks came cantering up the way, speaking with each other in a casual but private conversation.  They didn't even seem to notice Ace as they strode right past him, pushing open the doors ahead without pause.

Ah... well, it was a public building, after all.

Just inside the Hall was a small waiting area of sorts -- Ace would be able to peer beyond the corridor and see a stairwell at the end of the hall, and a side door that led into some large, pristine sort of ballroom of sorts.  Just beside the door was a desk occupied by a bored looking Unicorn mare.  She was a glaring shade of magenta with a ruffled, well-streaked black mane and obviously a fan of cosmetics given how dolled up she was.  Her Cutie Mark featured a quill and a bottle of ink, though she certainly didn't look very interested in paperwork at the moment.

"Welcome t'Ponyville Town Hall.  How can I assist ya'?" the secretary spouted off a well-rehearsed and completely listless line.

 "Ah yeah", Ace replied approaching her desk confidently. "I just swung into town and I'm looking for someone to help me get some new digs. Think you can help me with that, dollface?" It was hard to tell if he was trying to be charming or intentionally condescending.

"If y'want t'rent or buy a property, then fill out this form.  If y'want a commissioned buildings, then fill out this form.  Either way, take whichever y'use upstairs to the third door on the left; Red Tape there will take y'file and document it.  She'll give y'a contract that y'take all the way down the hall to Mayor Mare's office." the secretary prattled off without ever actually looking up at Ace.  Her horn glowed only brightly enough to give a half-hearted effort at getting the necessary paperwork and an inked quill to him.

 It would be more expensive to have something built for him, but it would also suit his needs perfectly. He has got some money to work with left over from the championship, but after that he's gonna have to start from almost nothing. He lets the dice decide for him.

( 09:30, Today: Ace High rolled 11 using 2d6.)

 The dice came up odd as as he agreed in his head, he would buy an existing property and see what he could do with it. He takes the proper form and fills it out before going up to see Red Tape. Ah government at work. He Hooves the paperwork over to Red Tape.

No matter where one went, there were always legal hoops to jump through.  Paper work, forms, signatures... the real bread and butter of government.  Even new towns like Appleoosa were steady succumbing to the siren call of litigation.  Some ponies didn't like the steady expansion of government, some supported it, and others didn't care so long as the grass got watered and the trains kept running.

As Ace made his way down the hall, he'd come to the aforementioned office of Red Tape.  It was a tidy little place, spartan and a little cramped to be honest.  There were boxes of files and documents at each corner piled high to the ceiling.  The in box on the desk was full to overflowing and the outbox was woefully meager by comparison.  At the center of it all was a tawny Earth Pony with a long blond mane tied back into a tidy bun... though strands slid free here and there, giving her a bit of a frazzled appearance.  She was sharply dressed in a lacy white cravat.  True to her name, one could spy the symbol of a roll of bright red tape emblazoned on her flank.

"Hmm?  Oh, more forms?" the tired-sounding mare sighed as she had another scroll piled onto her desk.  She would have been quite pretty but looked very tired... from the way her eyes drooped, she'd probably been there all night.  Red Tape looked up at the pony offering over the file and perked in surprise.  "Oh!  Sorry sir, I've been preoccupied.  Have a seat~."

Someone like Ace would be sharp enough to notice the little things.  Red Tape piqued at the sight of him and her tired eyes darted over him briefly, after which she promptly sat up a bit straighter and subtly tried to tidy herself up.  She hadn't been smiling when he first came in, but now she'd put a grin to her lips and her tone was more pleasant.  "So, how can I help you, mister...?"  she let that part hang to allow him to introduce himself.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:37, Thu 19 Apr 2012.

 "Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I have another piece of paperwork for ya's", Ace would say presenting the paperwork to purchase property to Red Tape using his magic. This dame could really use a vacation from the look at it. She wasn't bored like that painted secretary, this one was honestly working her tail off. He might be known to bend the rules from time to time, but it was always for ponies who deserve it. Other gamblers, swindlers, ponies far more sleazy than even him. He thinks if he can, he is going to help this girl out. "Hey ya wouldn't need a hoof around here would ya?"

(Not sure why I decided to give him a Brooklyn Accent.)

"That's kind of you to offer, but I couldn't.  These are all important forms and lots of private information.  Maybe if I had an assistant..." the mare muttered a bit before she shook her head and opened up the scroll Ace had given her.  She read through it for a moment, eyes sharply darting across choice bits of information since she knew the rest of the contents by heart anyway.

"Alright, mister Ace High?  Nice to meet you; my name's Red Tape and I'll help you with your filing.  If I can handle your claim, then I'll be sending you down to the Mayor for her seal of approval." Red Tape scooted her chair forward a bit to lean up on her desk.  "Now let's take a look here... ooh, buying a business property?  That's enterprising of you.  Now I see you've marked to have it zoned as an 'Entertainment' facility.  What exactly did you have in mind?"

 "I was thinking a place to take in a show, play some games, have a good time, and maybe win some money", Ace said not sure he wanted to use the word Casino because there is a little stigma with that word depending on where you go, whoever, it does work for some places. "Ever been to Las Pegasus?"

"Oh, no, I've never even left Ponyville, really.  Work has a way of chaining one to their desk." she laughed softly but then couldn't help but follow it with a very rueful sigh.  "That does sound like fun though.  But a gambling establishment is a tricky thing to process since there's a bunch of litigation surrounding them.  I'll have to know what sort of games you're planning on setting up.  Raffles, betting pools, table games...?"

"Pretty much the table games, no need to complicate things more than they need to", Ace replies. That's the thing about doing things legal like, it keeps you out of trouble, but is it ever a hassle. "I'll throw in some slots later."

"Alright, that sort of thing is much easier to justify to the board committee.  Number games tend to fly along much easier than games of chance.  Less potential to be rigged."  Red Tape explained as she leaned over to pick up a pen between her lips and begin jotting down notes onto the scroll.

"Actually, you're in a bit of luck.  A game store was opened up here in town just a few months ago by a pair of brothers.  I'd wager you could cut a deal with them for some supplies.  It'd be much cheaper than having to import."  the mare giggled a bit at her own play on words.

 "Sounds good beautiful," Ace said, now trying to be charming even if just a bit. "I'll have to see those brothers in a bit. I just hope there better than those mooks Flim and Flam I ran into back in Phillydelphia. Never trust a pony in a mustache."

Red Tape brightened considerably as she was flattered, her ears dipping back along her head and a girlish smile passing her lips before she could hide it behind a veneer of professionalism.  The mention of the Flim Flam Brothers made her frown though.  "Wise words... those two aren't exactly welcome in Ponyville anymore."

There was a whole story there, but Red Tape didn't seem keen to go into it.  She continued to work the fine print on the scroll and cast Ace a glance every now and then.  "Now for the hard question -- do you have any form of collateral?  New residents are always welcome in town, but we have to make sure they're going to be reliable land owners if we want to sell or rent any properties.  I mean, I think you're perfectly trustworthy... it's just policy."

 "I understand, I'd want somepony to put their money where their mouth is too", Ace answered the successfully charmed Earth Pony. As a unicorn, he does have a couple of tricks of his metaphorical sleeves. One such trick allowed him to keep his money on him almost anywhere, effectively anyway. He was not known to trust a lot of people, which is why such a stash is useful, it beats a bank. He still has some of the Poker Championship winnings left, but he figures after a down payment here and getting his place set up, it'll be all dried up. His horn glows with a grin as he opens what seems to be a hole in nothing, on the other side is a nice  pile of Bits. "Think that'll work?"

The mare leaned up a bit higher to see into the little pocket spell Ace had cast, squinting in concentration as she took a quick estimate of what he had.  She ran the numbers and pitted them against the property he was looking into, though the frown on her face wasn't exactly reassuring.

"Well..." it sounded like a 'no' was coming his way until she glanced up at him again.  The mare's ears dipped back in that flattered manner once more and she quickly jotted down a few lines at the bottom of the scroll.  "...it can be.  The normal investment rate is a bit steeper than you can appear to cover, but I think I can flex it just enough to keep you out of the red."

A few more strokes of the pen and she was finished.  Red Tape pressed her hoof into an ink pad and plunked it down onto the parchment, then signed her name over it as well.  With that the claim was fully authorized and she quickly rolled it back up to pass over to Ace.  "There you go~!  Just leave the bits here and I'll pass them off to the town treasurer later.  Congratulations, Ace~."

 "Sure thing", Ace said smiling, glad that worked out. He'll have to pay more later when he can, but for now he can at least get started, not to mention have somewhere to sleep tonight. He makes sure the bits are passed along to the proper place, he then moves along to see anypony else he needs to see now that he has an authorized scroll.