City Council to vote on citywide smoking ban

Philadelphia restaurant patrons should know by the end of this week whether they will have smoke-free dining establishments and bars come January. Today, City Council is expected to pass a revised smoking ban bill. The original bill was scheduled to be voted on in March, but Councilman Michael Nutter, the bill's sponsor, removed it from the agenda after failing to find the requisite 10 votes. He revised the bill in hopes of recruiting more supporters among the 17 council members. Under the revised bill, bars -- defined as businesses that get no more than 10 percent of their income from food -- would have until January 2008 to implement the ban. Restaurants will have to become smoke-free by January 2006 if the bill passes. Cavanaugh's Restaurant bartender Shane Carroll said that "people are already adjusting" to the possible ban and that the proposed two-year extension for existing bars will help ease the transition. Even with the extension, however, Carroll hopes that the ban will not pass because the majority of Cavanaugh's patrons are smokers. He expressed doubts that the cleaner air will attract enough new patrons to replace those lost due to the ban. Proponents of the bill say that people who wish to smoke can stand outside, but Carroll said that this is not feasible because of the residential nature of campus and the cold winter weather. "There is really no place outside for people to smoke," he said. The bill has also been revised to include an exemption for sidewalk cafes. Private clubs may apply for a waiver from the ban during functions not open to the public. Nutter hopes that these revisions will ease the effect of the ban on businesses and will allow smokers to live their lifestyle without affecting the health of others. Mike Pinckney, the assistant manager of campus pizza parlor Allegro's, hopes that the ban will pass. He thinks it will create a cleaner environment for patrons and save the restaurant money on ashtrays. "We're not the bad guys," Pinckney said. "If customers have a problem [with the ban], they should call their governor." College junior Krista Jackson, a nonsmoker, said, "I think having a smoke-free restaurant is great. [Smoke-free] bars, on the other hand, will upset a lot of people and maybe affect business." Many smokers defended their right to smoke in public bars. West Philadelphia resident Michael Parsons said, "If [someone] doesn't want to hang out in smoky bars, then they shouldn't go to bars." Even if supporters of the bill are victorious today, it will be two years before Penn students will experience smoke-free campus bars. Michael Bayles, who graduated from the Wharton School in May, said, "I wish they had [the ban] four years ago. There is no reason to wait."