Irish pub owners called on the government to ease its ban on smoking in bars after drinks sales fell by as much as a quarter in the last two months.

Suppliers of drinks to Irish pubs have posted a decline in sales of between 15 percent and 25 percent, the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland said in an e-mailed statement. The VFI represents more than 6,000 rural pubs.

Source: Bloomberg.com. Link

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Fayetteville’s smoking ban has been in place for several months, and some restaurant owners said Tuesday that they are shutting down because of it.

Casa Taco is one restaurant that recently closed its doors. The owner told 40/29′s Melissa Kelly that the smoking ban snuffed out his sales.

“Sales dropped off dramatically,” said Alex Hunt. “We lost our late-night business … a lot of people come in after the bars close.”

Along with Hunt, the owners of the Ozark Brewing Co. and Café Santa Fe said the smoking ban was a factor in their decisions to close.

On Dickson Street, some restaurant owners say their late-night business is down by as much as 25 percent.

Source: 4029tv.com.  Link

The city centre pub in Galway, western Ireland, has seen its business drop by 60 percent since March when smoking in workplaces became illegal.

“We had absolutely no option,” Lawless, 33, told RTE state radio on Wednesday. “We were going to be out of business in the next month anyway.”

Link

[NY Nanny Mayor Boomburg has proposed forcing bars to close at 1 AM, which for many is their most profitable time. The problem? His ban is forcing patrons out on the street where the noise is bothering the neighbors.]

“It’s an irresolvable problem that the city’s created,” said Robert Bookman, attorney for the New York Nightlife Association, of the noise pollution created by the smoking ban. “Short of [citing someone for] disturbing the peace, there’s nothing you can do about people out on the street. It gets into a difficult constitutional problem: you’re allowed to be on the street.”

If nothing else, the smoking ban has increased animosity between bar owners and residents, and it is unclear whether the new noise legislation will alleviate or exacerbate the problem. “[The smoking ban] has helped create an antagonistic environment between the community and the clubs,” said Bookman, attorney for the Nightlife Association. “The music has never been a big problem. I can count on my hands the number of times an establishment has gotten a repeat violation for music.”

Source: The Villager Link

Lexington, KY – Jackpot Bingo leases its parlor to a dozen different non-profit groups on a regular basis. Those groups rely on bingo revenue as a main fundraiser. However, since the smoking ban went into effect last April, attendance at the bingos has dropped by more than 50 percent.
The Tates Creek High School Marching Band stands to lose about $80,000 this year in bingo money.

“We’re trying to supplement this with raffle ticket sales and candy sales, but $80,000 is a large chunk of change,” says Assistant Band Director Andy Critz.

If the band can’t raise enough money to offset the loss, they may have to cancel some band trips or competitions.

Source: WTQ. Link Expired.

Lisa Sorochan, an owner of the late, lamented Bacchus, says it was hurt badly when the city’s smoking bylaw reduced business by about 50 per cent. The Bacchus opened in 2000. In its first two years, it regularly would close to its 275-person indoors capacity, Sorochan says. As business dwindled, you’d be lucky to find 60 patrons on hand. One estimate of the loss at the Bacchus is $100,000.

Link

“Bar owners claim they are losing as much as 60 percent of their business as smokers flock to establishments where they can light up.”

“Lora Wilson, owner of Mugsy’s Cafe in Oakdale, said she is losing $150 a day and is cutting back on shifts because she can’t afford to pay her staff of four.”

Source: Norwich Bulletin. Link Expired

Sales from the late-night crowd at Bogey’s between 10 p.m. and midnight are down about 25 percent, primarily because of lower liquor sales, he said.

Source: Harald Tribune. Link Expired

Brother Jeff Oyler, who manages The New Plantation in Evans, offered some evidence to bolster the claim: Just as Union Colony Brewery’s business sagged by about 25 percent after the ban, new patrons at the Evans bar contributed to a small but measurable business boost, he said.

Source: The Tribune (Colorado). Link

The smoking ban is having a devastating impact on the small businesses that dominate the pub, bar, tavern and nightclub sector of the hospitality industry. Fully 79% of drinking establishments report the smoking ban is having an impact and 71% say the impact is negative. Pubs, bars and taverns report an average decline in liquor sales of 23.9% in October compared to a year earlier, nightclubs a decline of 34.5% and legions a decline of 18.8%.

Source: Canada NewsWire Group. Link Expired.

The Restaurant Association of Maryland surveyed 150 Montgomery eateries on the ban. Of the 25 respondents, 71 percent had to lay off employees or cut back employees’ hours, said Melvin R. Thompson, the association’s executive director.

Source: Gazette.net. Link Expired.

“It has almost put me out of business. We are down about 45 percent for each month,” Zook said. “Our food sales were 48 percent of our business. Now they are down to 10 percent. A lot of people who had drinks with lunch or dinner are not coming in now.“

Source: Palm Beach Post. Link Expired

Joe Mancino owns the Fulton Ale House. He says that since the
smoking ban took effect, his business is down 25%. While that may not
sound like anything new, Mancino says the money he collects for the
state’s Quick Draw game is down as well.

Source: News 10 Now. Link Expired.

It’s worse at Tony’s Sports Bar & Restaurant in Queens Village.
“It killed our business,” said owner Tony Narain. Within the
past year, alcohol and beer sales have declined 70 percent, he said.
“I’m losing money right now.”

Source: Newsday. Link Expired

The Restaurant Association of Maryland surveyed 150 Montgomery eateries on the ban. Of the 25 respondents, 71 percent had to lay off employees or cut back employees’ hours, said Melvin R. Thompson, the association’s executive director.

The number of beer kegs sold in the 12 months since the ban took effect, compared with the year before, declined about 4.1 percent to 65,308, according to the county. Sales slipped to about $4.3 million, a 1.76 percent drop from the year before.

Source: Gazette.net. Link expired.

Maryland – Since the ban was implemented October 2003 by the Montgomery County Council, Scaggs said Anchor Inn suffered a 40 percent loss in Keno, beer, wine, liquor and food sales.

Prior to the ban, Scaggs had installed a $350,000 ventilation system in the restaurant with air exchangers that took in smoke and replaced it with fresh air.

Source Gazette.net. Link Expired.

Tukwila Washington

Let me choose a real person for you at random. How about my waitress here in the Ripe Tomato Bar & Grill at the Grand Central Casino? Let me introduce you to Tracy Willows. She’s one of the lucky ones.

The single mother of two young children, a former smoker, drives in from Enumclaw for the day shift. Before the smoking ban, she worked 38 hours a week – enough to qualify for the casino’s medical and dental benefits – and walked away with $75 a day in tips.

Since the ban started in January, the casino has had to slowly cut her hours to 21 per week, not enough to qualify for benefits. On a good day, she said, she’ll make $25 in tips.

(These are the people the nicotine nannies claim they’re helping.)

Source: Tribnet.com. Link Expired