Virginia smoking ban a hot topic in tobacco country

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine has moved one step closer to a statewide smoking ban in restaurants and bars with Thursday’s landmark agreement between Democratic and Republican leaders that prohibits smoking in these establishments with a few exceptions.

Those exceptions include restaurants that have completely separate smoking rooms that are physically separated from the rest of the restaurant by walls and doors and that have their own ventilation systems; permanent outdoor patio areas; any portion of a restaurant that is used exclusively for private functions; private clubs; and street-side hotdog stands and other mobile food vending areas.

“The dangers of second-hand smoke are undeniable — that’s why I made a restaurant smoking ban one of legislative priorities,” Kaine said in a new release. “This legislation will make Virginia’s restaurants safer for both patrons and employees.”

House of Delegates Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, is quoted in the news release as calling the agreement a “bipartisan compromise.”

“This compromise strikes a fair balance between the rights of smokers who choose to enjoy a legal product and the rights of other individuals who want to enjoy a smoke-free environment when eating at a restaurant,” he said.

‘A hassle’
Local reaction to the ban, which would likely go into effect July 1 if passed by the General Assembly, is mixed.

At Ham’s Restaurant, assistant managers John Ball and Tony Murphy both said the ban would create problems for the restaurant.

“It would be a definite hassle on us,” Ball said. “It’s a small restaurant. We’d have no way to enclose (a smoking area), and with the economy the way it is, there’s no money to do it.”

Ball said restaurants will have two concerns: that smokers will stop going out for food and drinks, which will affect their profitability, and that forcing smokers to go outside for a cigarette could invite an increase in incidents of people leaving without paying their bill.

“Hopefully, it won’t pass,” Ball said. “We’ll lose business.”

Danville resident Rebekah Collins said she also hopes the ban doesn’t pass.

“It takes away people’s freedom. There are already non-smoking areas and people can sit over there,” Collins said. “If I go to a bar, I want to smoke. I wouldn’t go to a place where I couldn’t smoke.”

Matthew Bliss, of Danville, is a smoker who said he wasn’t sure how the ban would affect his decisions on where to eat or drink.

“There are a lot of places now you can’t smoke in anyway,” Bliss said. “I think if bars went non-smoking it would cut down a lot on business.”

Russell and Kimberly Terry, of Ringgold, were at Ham’s on Thursday. He is a smoker, and she is a non-smoker who says smoking doesn’t bother her.

“I’ll go to (places) that let me smoke,” Russell Terry said. “You can’t drink a beer in a bar without a cigarette. I’ll stay home first.”

‘Get rid of it’

Non-smokers are pleased that a ban may be on the way.

Jim Emerson, a registered nurse who works in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at UNC Health Care, said he quit smoking seven or eight years ago.

“Just get rid of it (smoking in restaurants),” Emerson said. “It’s not a big deal — if you want to smoke, go outside.”

Alan Miller, of Danville, agreed.

“I’m for the smoking ban,” Miller said. “I don’t like people smoking when I’m eating or drinking.”

Buffalo Wild Wings is one of few places in Danville that won’t be affected by a smoking ban because the establishment already has well-defined and separate areas for smokers and non-smokers. The bar area of the restaurant, including many tables, is completely glass enclosed.

Manager Clifton Glasscock said all the business would have to do is install one door — there is an opening from the bar to the restroom area — and it will be in compliance.

“This is tobacco country, so it’s hard to believe they’re going to do it,” Glasscock said. “But I don’t see that it will affect us; one door and we’re good to go.”

He said he sees the move as the first step toward a total ban.

“There will still be people who are not completely happy, because doors open (and smoke will come out),” Glasscock said. “Eventually, every place will be completely non-smoking.”

• Contact Denice Thibodeau at dthibodeau@registerbee.com or (434) 791-7985.