Paging Dr. Faust
Key fact of trying to do business in the Twin Cities - at least, business in any of the areas that run afoul of the Twin Cities' libertine-yet-prudish sense of public morality - is that you can't win.
No. Not at all.
In an unusual twist on metro-area smoking bans, a few Ramsey County eating and drinking spots are being forced to decide between going smoke-free or going liquor-free.
At least three White Bear Lake establishments received exemptions from the county smoking ban when they showed that more than half of their revenues come from liquor sales. But that put them in violation of a local liquor ordinance that requires them to sell more food than booze.
The dilemma leaves them with a choice: give up their smoking exemption or give up their liquor license.
It's a no-brainer, said Jim McArdle, part owner of JJ's Bierstube, who had hoped to keep attracting smokers to his bar.
"Honestly, it will be more prudent for me to keep my liquor license," he said. "I've been put into a Catch-22. I guess I'll go no-smoking."
It's been interesting, talking with bar owners and anti-ban activists; bar owners are angry, and the inevitable search for work-arounds to the ban has begun. Cops seem exceedingly disinterested in enforcing the ban, which is a good start...
...until, of course, the ban zealots begin more closely emulating MADD, and demanding ever-more vigilance.
Count on it.
(And by the way, I have no dog in this fight; I've never smoked, beyond perhaps a couple of cigars a year, and having worked in smoky bars, I don't miss the smoke much. But that should not be the county's business...)
Posted by Mitch at
May 2, 2005 06:33 AM
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That is an issue which splits me. I believe that people can responsibly drink, but what can you describe as responsible smoking? Lighting up in a hermetically sealed room? I believe that everyone has a right to do what they please as long as it doesn't infringe on other's rights to do the same. In that case, why can't I go to a public place and hang out without either choking on the smoke or smelling like a used ashtray later?
I think that the liquor ordinance is horrible, I'd oppose that easily. The smoking ban is harder.
Having come from California, I have to say public area smoking bans make more sense there. They found a simple solution: create outdoor patios where people can smoke. The one place I visited had a covered, heated patio so it was always in full swing even during winter. Yet I spent more time in the smoke free interior. Everyone was happy.
This idea is harder to implement the closer you get to Canadian climes.
Posted by: Aodhan at May 2, 2005 03:50 PMSorry Mitch, but protecting residents' health and safety IS the business of Hennepin County. It why they have police, a fire department and yes, a new clean indoor air ordinance.
I suggest you expand your conversations from just bar owners and pro-smoke activists (with Jeffers, you get two-for-one) and talk to the hospitality employees, as I have. Many have told me how much they appreciate what us "zealots" have done to make their workplace better. They won't say this to a reporter, for fear of losing their job (which has already happened to several who spoke out in favor of the ban).
FYI, cops don't need to enforce the law. Business owners (yes, even Sue Jeffers) have that responsibility. Smokers and nonsmokers have been handling this change very well, very few problems with noncompliance have been reported anywhere.
Re: smoking bans in colder climates, most of Canada and the cold-weather states NY and MA have gone smokefree. It works in Duluth. Certainly we can do this, too.
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