Smoking Ban Claims Three More Victims

Three of the key - and remaining - tenants on the Mall of America's Fourth Floor "entertainment" district have closed their doors.

And while marketing at the Mall of America is dicey (as the article says, it's hard to strike a balance between family-safe and crowd-drawing), the coup de grace came from...

...the smoking ban:

But the "final nail in the coffin" was Bloomington's smoking ban, said Richard Grones, founder of Cambridge Commercial Realty in Edina. Those who visited the fourth floor's dining establishments were told they had to step outside in the parking lot if they wanted a smoke. Some decided to take their business elsewhere.

"The smoking ban hurt all of us a lot more than we thought it would," said Andy Kostka, manager of the Hooters restaurant in the mall.