HarrisburgNightlife

The anti-smoking law, aka, “Senate Bill 246, the Clean Indoor Air Act” was signed by our governor last week. For the last year or so, HarrisburgNightlife has been quietly supporting all the businesses who choose to go smoke free on their own by noting them along the left hand side of the page. Will we have to reverse this and start to note all the bars which will be exempt from the law to tell people where they can expect their eyes to be irritated, come home smelling like smoke, and wake up with a scratchy throat the next morning?

According to the law there are several exemptions being made:

They include bars that have 20 percent or less in annual sales of food, as well as cigar bars, tobacco shops and private clubs whose officers agree to it.

Casinos would be permitted to allow smoking in up to 50 percent of their gaming halls — though Philadelphia’s law prohibits its two casinos from allowing any smoking, and the legislation passed today will not change that.

Also excluded under the proposed statewide ban: private homes and other residences and vehicles — unless they are being used for child-care services — and long-term care facilities, as well as residential facilities used for drug and alcohol rehabilitation and mental-health services.

So what does this all mean for 2nd Street for example?

• Will nightclubs which do not serve food such as Eclipse, Hardware Bar, and Dragonfly go non-smoking on their own will, or will they still cater to the smokers?
• Will these nightclubs install indoor smoking rooms like Level 2 did when they opened?
• How will smoking and non-smoking bars and restaurants be labeled? Will there be a big sticker on the front door that lets patrons know what is allowed inside? (In California, they post warning plaques like the Surgeon’s General warning on a pack of cigarettes)
• Will walking down 2nd Street be worse than going inside a smoking establishment because of all the smokers kicked to the sidewalk to get their fix? Will smoking be permitted outside within the realm of alfresco dining?
• What about restaurants that serve food, but can claim less than 20% of annual sales? What will that say about their food quality?
• How about restaurants that can claim around 25-30% of their food sales? Will they try to curb their fledgling dining business in hopes to attract more smokers and cash in on more alcohol sales?

Lots of questions still wait to be answered, but we’ll have to wait until September 12, 2008 until the law goes into effect.

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Posted by Bone on Tuesday, June 17th, 2008 at 8:33 am.