Nov 17, 2006 6:48 pm US/Central
Frisco Bans Smoking At Businesses
by Bud Gillett
FRISCO (CBS 11 News) ―
The cigarette will soon be on the list of Frisco's most wanted.
A newly-amended city ordinance prohibiting smoking in virtually all businesses goes into effect tomorrow. it includes restaurants and bars.
Reaction among patrons is mixed. Gary Bowers was at Snookie's bar and grill on Friday. He said, "If I'm in a restaurant eating, I don't particularly want it floating around me inside. As far as being outside, I think people should be able to smoke when they want to."
But Frisco's mayor is an unabashed supporter of the ban. "I voted for it…" said Mike Simpson. "Because it's a health issue in my opinion."
But the manager of Snookie's Bar and Grill in Frisco says a bar is a different situation from a restaurant because of the human factor. Mark Slevin said Snookie's failed the city code air handling test for smoke. So it repositioned itself as Frisco's first smoke-free bar and grill. Because of the new ordinance, it now has new, unanticipated competition.
Other owners complain the measure was sprung on them suddenly and unfairly. They insist it was set only for council discussion and not for an up-or-down vote when it was passed on the night of November 7—the same night as national elections.
Marc Waleri is the majority owner of the Varsity Club in Frisco. It's one of 18 establishments likely to be affected by the ordinance. But there is an "out": A grandfather clause for bars that may have just invested in heavy-duty air handlers that had previously met city code. The Varsity Club will not have to enforce the no-smoking ban for two and a half years.
Mayor Mike Simpson says like any city ordinance, this one can be "tweaked" down the road.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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