Thank you for not smoking
Eight years ago, Corvallis became one of the then-few cities in the U.S. to ban indoor smoking in all public venues, including restaurants and bars. Local tavern owners protested vehemently, claiming that there would be a mad rush toward smoke-friendly businesses in neighboring towns. Some claimed that they would end up bankrupt within a year.
It never happened. No bars closed because of the new law. Beer sales didn't decline whatsoever. The economic impact was virtually nil, other than a mild decline in video poker sales. However, considering the Oregon Lottery's announcement that lottery revenues have broached the $1 billion mark this year, I don't think the state has to worry about the efficacy of poker machines as a fundraising tool.
A new study by the Oregon Air Monitoring Project has just been released showing that bars and restaurants in Corvallis have the lowest levels of pollution in the state. That registers a "duh" on the stating the obvious scale, but it's still good to have the public reinforcement of ordinances that are still considered overly stringent by many.
Corvallis has gone above and beyond a simple indoor ban, at this point. Smokers can't light up within 10 feet of any public entrance and last year, the Corvallis city council banned outdoor smoking in public parks.
Now if only someone could convince my neighbor to stop chucking cigarette butts on my lawn, I'd be ecstatic.
It never happened. No bars closed because of the new law. Beer sales didn't decline whatsoever. The economic impact was virtually nil, other than a mild decline in video poker sales. However, considering the Oregon Lottery's announcement that lottery revenues have broached the $1 billion mark this year, I don't think the state has to worry about the efficacy of poker machines as a fundraising tool.
A new study by the Oregon Air Monitoring Project has just been released showing that bars and restaurants in Corvallis have the lowest levels of pollution in the state. That registers a "duh" on the stating the obvious scale, but it's still good to have the public reinforcement of ordinances that are still considered overly stringent by many.
Corvallis has gone above and beyond a simple indoor ban, at this point. Smokers can't light up within 10 feet of any public entrance and last year, the Corvallis city council banned outdoor smoking in public parks.
Now if only someone could convince my neighbor to stop chucking cigarette butts on my lawn, I'd be ecstatic.
posted by Corvallist at
10:36 PM
3 Comments:
Hooray for a non-smoking town! We love it!
Collect all the butts, swirl them in a slurry of ash, shit and water and dump them on your neighbor's front step. That's what I did to our old smoker neighbor, in addition to reporting them.
By
crallspace, at 12:42 PM
Banning outdoor smoking is like the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of. Outdoor?! I thought it was some kind of joke when I first read about it. That's the kind of thing Bill O'Reilly would take up as an example of the out-of-control liberal.
On the other hand, no smoking in bars is great. I'm not a smoker, but I mean, outside the smoke just goes up in the air. Let them smoke outside.
By
Christopher Farrell, at 1:21 PM
Chris, I tend to agree. But I am all for tougher littering penalties for people who toss cigarette butts on the ground, especially in a state that burns as easily as ours does in late summer. They're not biodegradable, folks... tossing them on the beach or road or in the park (or my driveway!) makes you a bit of a jerk.
By
Corvallist, at 3:25 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home