A look at what's going on in Trinidad, on H Street, and in the larger area north of Capitol Hill.
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Council Passes Smoking Ban
I'm posting this because it is of interest since H Street has some restaurants & taverns in the pipeline. The Council, in a 12-1 vote (Schwartz), passed the smoking ban. Mayor William has yet to sign the measure.
4 comments:
Anonymous
said...
yippeee! No more stinky hair and clothes after a night out.
I quit smoking a long time ago and I'll probably enjoy not smelling of smoke when I go out. That being said, in my mind, bars and clubs are supposed to be smoky, that is the way that they have always been. I've usually accepted that the cost of going out to a bar or a club is that I'll stink of smoke after the fact.
Are the bars on H street smoky places? I've been to the Argonaut but it was empty that night so I don't recall if it was smoky.
I also quit smoking, not too long ago. Having been a smoker for a few years, I do have some sympathy for those who want to light up when they are out for the night. I think we have demonized smoking enough while all sorts of other vices get overlooked. There is enough of a niche for smoke-free establishments that bar and club owners are moving towards this without a law requiring it, and there has indeed been quite an increase in these places over the past few years (in DC at least). I wish this ban would not have passed. What's next for policymakers to regulate?
One of the least welcome adjustments I had to make after moving here from California was getting used to smoke in bars and restaurants again (the least welcome is probably getting used to winter). Coming from a place where the ban has been in place for years, I can confidently say that the hospitality industry's concern about its effects are misplaced. Business doesn't fall off, bars don't close. Smokers simply adjust to the new arrangement and take their smoke breaks outside. In fact, some studies showed that business in that sector actually increased because non-smokers who had been avoiding smoke-filled environments started going out again once the ban was in place. And let's not forget that there are many more non-smokers than smokers these days, which is a trend which only grow more pronounced as fewer young people pick up the habit. This is definitely an idea whose time has come. As to the comment above, I'll just say that it's very easy to get used to smoke free bars and restaurants. They may always have been smoky in the past, but the times they are a' changin'.
4 comments:
yippeee! No more stinky hair and clothes after a night out.
I quit smoking a long time ago and I'll probably enjoy not smelling of smoke when I go out. That being said, in my mind, bars and clubs are supposed to be smoky, that is the way that they have always been. I've usually accepted that the cost of going out to a bar or a club is that I'll stink of smoke after the fact.
Are the bars on H street smoky places? I've been to the Argonaut but it was empty that night so I don't recall if it was smoky.
I also quit smoking, not too long ago. Having been a smoker for a few years, I do have some sympathy for those who want to light up when they are out for the night. I think we have demonized smoking enough while all sorts of other vices get overlooked. There is enough of a niche for smoke-free establishments that bar and club owners are moving towards this without a law requiring it, and there has indeed been quite an increase in these places over the past few years (in DC at least).
I wish this ban would not have passed. What's next for policymakers to regulate?
One of the least welcome adjustments I had to make after moving here from California was getting used to smoke in bars and restaurants again (the least welcome is probably getting used to winter). Coming from a place where the ban has been in place for years, I can confidently say that the hospitality industry's concern about its effects are misplaced. Business doesn't fall off, bars don't close. Smokers simply adjust to the new arrangement and take their smoke breaks outside. In fact, some studies showed that business in that sector actually increased because non-smokers who had been avoiding smoke-filled environments started going out again once the ban was in place. And let's not forget that there are many more non-smokers than smokers these days, which is a trend which only grow more pronounced as fewer young people pick up the habit. This is definitely an idea whose time has come.
As to the comment above, I'll just say that it's very easy to get used to smoke free bars and restaurants. They may always have been smoky in the past, but the times they are a' changin'.
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