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The nights would be voluntary and set by the business owner, said Al Bliss, a health department educator.
“This could mean one night, or whatever the owner decides,” Bliss said. “We’d like to measure the success or failure of such an event. We’d also like to know if offering smokefree nights encourages smokers to quit.”
The health department is looking at barriers that can prevent young adults from quitting smoking in a project funded by a $100,000 grant from the American Legacy Foundation, a national public health foundation devoted to keeping young people from smoking.
The smoking rate among 18 to 24 year olds who aren’t in college is 41 percent, one of the highest rates in Wisconsin and far above the 22 percent of all adults who smoke.
“The bars are another venue for us to reach young adults,” Bliss said.
But Dave Parisey, president of the La Crosse County Tavern League and owner of the Popcorn Tavern, said he would be opposed to smokeless nights.
“About 98 percent of my clientele smoke, so I’d have no customers if I went smokeless for a night,” Parisey said. “It’s amazing how many people smoke and drink. I’m afraid bar owners wouldn’t be interested. This whole smoking issue is a sour lemon for us.”
Parisey said bars shouldn’t have to take a financial risk at smokeless nights.
“I understand the health consequences of smoke, but it’s the nature of the beast — smoking and drinking go hand in hand,” he said. “I’m a reformed smoker, but I don’t want to lose money and customers.”
Bliss said the health department could help establishments market and promote their smokeless nights.
If bar owners are not interested in smokeless nights, Bliss said, he will seek to have them offer signs, coasters, napkins and table tents with quit-smoking message.
Nicole Van Ert, health department education aide, said she also will try to get smokeless nights at local comedy clubs.
“Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the 78 percent of adult Wisconsin residents who are nonsmokers didn’t have to breathe in secondhand smoke while frequenting bars?” Van Ert said.
The health department and Western Technical College conducted focus groups among 18 to 24 year old last year. In a survey of 138 young adults, 50 percent said it would make no difference to them if bars went totally smokefree. Twenty-eight percent said they would frequent smokefree bars less, and 22 percent said they would frequent smokefree bars more often.
“The data suggests that if bars went completely smokefree that the majority would frequent the bars more or the same,” said Derek Moore, a health department epidemiologist.
Terry Rindfleisch can be reached at trindfleisch@lacrossetribune.com or (608) 791-8227.
POLL: Do you think smoking should be banned in bars?/b>
“No. I think it’s up to the owner of the business to make his own rules. There’s too many laws out there already.”
- Dan Nielsen, Westby, bar owner
“I don’t know if somebody should make a law to have it banned, but I like going to places that are non-smoking. When I get home at night, I don’t have to take a shower before I go to bed. It works in Madison. We were down there a few weeks ago, and every place was packed.”
- Carmen Staub, Onalaska
“Yes. We’re from Mankato, and it just went smokefree up there. I like that I don’t smell like smoke the next morning. I have friends that smoke that like (non-smoking bars). They don’t want to smell like it, either.”
- Brian Carpenter, Mankato, Minn., in La Crosse with his band
“I have mixed feelings about it. It would be nice if they had a bar that no one smoked in, more for people my age. Sometimes you just want to go to the bar and enjoy a nice glass of beer or wine, and you shouldn’t have to put your health at risk (to do it). At the same time, I feel like businesses should be able to determine this for themselves.”
- Rebecca Hayes, La Crescent, Minn.
“No. It should be controlled. There should be a smokefree area in a bar. We have a smokefree section where separate air comes in. Economically, you can’t (go smokefree). There’d be (other) bars who’d allow it.”
- Don Padesky, La Crosse, bar owner
“Hell yeah, I do. They’re dim enough in there. I lived out in Utah, and they passed that (rule), and I liked that a lot. I think what it comes down to is that people who work there shouldn’t have (their health) be put in jeopardy.”
- Whitney Carson, La Crosse, a smoker
“No, I don’t. The reason why is, if you take away someone’s habitual smoking habit and fill them up with alcohol, there will be more fights and increased alcohol consumption. It might go over well with the city’s all-around progress toward improving the health of the community, but alcohol and cigarettes seem to go hand in hand.”
- Ryan Burdick, La Crosse, a smoker
Thorn wrote on Jul 28, 2006 12:11 PM: