TCB
By Christopher Gray, Fri., Oct. 28, 2005
The Last Smoking Ban Item Ever ... Until Next Week
Looks like the smoking ban is here to stay. Last week, Federal Judge Sam Sparks upheld the controversial ban, which had been challenged in a lawsuit filed by several local bars. "The public has a substantial interest in the enforcement of ordinances that protect the public health," Sparks wrote in his ruling. Sparks did order the city to limit the penalty for businesses violating the ban to $500, in accordance with the maximum allowable fine for a Class C misdemeanor, and to institute a judicial review process before stripping violators of their licenses. The judge stated bar owners ultimately failed to demonstrate there would be "irreparable harm" to their businesses because of the ban. "It is difficult for this Court to conclude that any loss of revenue was directly correlated to the smoking ban or would be lasting," he wrote.Meanwhile, reports continue to filter in that suggest local bars and nightclubs are indeed losing business to the ban. Saxon Pub manager Dave Cotton said Monday that the South Lamar venue was running behind in its monthly receipts, mostly due to a steep drop in daytime business. Threadgill's Eddie Wilson, for whom Cotton books music, reports his numbers are down as well. Up at the Hole in the Wall, results have been mixed. "The numbers were dropping off at first, and I thought they would continue like that, but they didn't," says daytime manager Brooks Brannon. "I can't really tell for sure." Putting in an outdoor patio has "absolutely" helped the Hole hold onto its customers, Brannon adds. Of course news of a drop in business from Hole neighbor the Cactus Cafe, where smoking was never permitted, supports suspicion that the smoking ban has run head-on into larger issues of nationwide economic woes.
That's no salve for Antone's. Compared to the past two Septembers, the Home of the Blues saw a 19% drop in attendance this year, according to Direct Events Vice-President of Operations Barry Kohlus. So far October's bar receipts are down as much as 23%. "I would say the majority of that is attributable to the smoking ban, the fact that maybe smokers aren't going out as much, yet we're not seeing the nonsmokers come out like we thought they were going to," he says. Because they attract fewer casual clubgoers, the Austin Music Hall and La Zona Rosa have not been affected as severely, Kohlus says, but business at their Backstage Bar is off 15%. Direct Events is considering adding a patio for the Backstage, but Antone's street-locked location makes that impossible. "We just sort of have to grit our teeth and tough it out," Kohlus says.