Most restaurants smoke-free, but exceptions exist

More than three months after Virginia’s new restrictions on smoking in restaurants went into effect, about 88 percent of restaurants in the state have gone smoke-free, the state Health Department says.

Yet smokers still can find havens where lighting up is welcomed. Some restaurants have taken steps to permit smoking legally. Stories also abound of places where smoking is accepted even in violation of the law, which has prompted some calls for tougher enforcement and fines.

The law, which went into effect Dec. 1, prohibits smoking in restaurants but allows certain exceptions. Restaurants may allow smoking indoors only if they have separately enclosed and vented smoking and nonsmoking rooms with a public entrance into the nonsmoking area. They also may allow smoking in outdoor areas such as patios.

So far, it appears that few, if any, summonses have been issued for violations.

“To my knowledge, no citations have been issued,“ said Gary Hagy, director of the Virginia Department of Health’s division of food and environment services.

Local health departments check restaurants for violations of the law during inspections, making sure they have removed smoking paraphernalia and posted signs in nonsmoking areas. Of the roughly 10,000 restaurants that health inspectors have checked since the law went into effect, almost 96 percent have been in compliance, Hagy said. That is out of about 16,000 commercial establishments covered by the law.

Responsibility for issuing citations lies with local law-enforcement agencies, some of which have been consulting with state and local health officials and the state attorney general’s office about how best to enforce the law.

Even some restaurateurs say enforce ment, so far, has not been exactly overwhelming.

“At this point, they [state lawmakers] have forced restaurants to make decisions and spend money to address the smoking issue,“ said Rick Lyons, owner of The Republic, a restaurant and bar on West Broad Street in Richmond. “But if nobody is going to enforce the law, what is the point?“

Lyons is critical of how the law has been implemented because he spent at least $15,000 extra to make the restaurant compliant when it opened in November, including putting in the required ventilation for separate smoking and nonsmoking rooms.

Public-health groups that lobbied for stronger indoor-smoking laws in Virginia say they might push for the General Assembly to revisit the issue and give the law more teeth. They cite the difficulties and slow start in enforcing the law and what they argue is a weak $25 fine for violations.

“Obviously, we are seeing many, many more smoke-free restaurants across the state,“ said Cathleen Smith Grzesiek, director of government relations for the American Heart Association of Virginia. “But unfortunately, there are many that are either violating the spirit of the law . . . or just blatantly ignoring it altogether.“

Hagy said health officials have been working to educate restaurants about the law and warning them to correct any violations. Health departments are preparing to take a tougher approach and refer more violations to police, he said.

The Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control also recently warned restaurant owners that their liquor licenses would be jeopardized if they are convicted of violating the smoking law. State law permits the department to revoke a restaurant’s license if it fails to comply with local health codes, a spokesman said.

Because the law does not specify a minimum amount of space for smoking and nonsmoking rooms, some restaurants have devoted most of their space to smoking.

At Caddy’s restaurant in Midlothian, for example, owner Judy Maxie enclosed a separate, nonsmoking area that has two seats, while the rest of the restaurant remains smoking. “I would say 90 percent of my customers are smokers,“ Maxie said. “I did what I needed to do to accommodate my customers. I am a law-abiding citizen, and what I have done is what the state required.“

Caddy’s is one of about 160 restaurants in Virginia listed on SmokeFreelyVA.com, a Web site started last fall by Powhatan County resident Moe Marchetti.

Marchetti, who argues that the new smoking law tramples private-property rights, said he wants to give smokers a resource to find eateries where they still can light up.

“It [smoking] is not a smart choice,“ Marchetti said. “But it is not a choice the government should make for you.“

Most of the restaurants listed on the site have taken steps to allow smoking legally, he said. But a few have indicated they will tolerate smoking even in violation of the law. “I am mostly about being a law-abiding citizen, but I am also not against a little civil disobedience,“ he said.