Mohave Daily News: Local

After one year, tough anti-smoking law has little or no impact on area restaurants

BULLHEAD CITY - After a year on the books, most Bullhead City restaurants have not been affected by an anti-smoking law passed in 2006 by Arizona voters.

Proposition 201, approved by voters in November 2006, banned smoking from all enclosed public places and places of employment in Arizona. The law went into effect May 1, 2007.

Some restaurant owners said the slowdown in the economy and the high gas prices have played a bigger role in customer sales in Bullhead City restaurant and bars than the anti-smoking law.

Max Correa, manager at El Palacio Mexican Restaurant in Bullhead City, said he saw a 30 to 40 percent decrease in customers in the bar section and about 10 to 15 percent decrease in the restaurant after the law went into effect.

Smokers who have to go outside to smoke are generally in a bad mood when or if they return. Correa does not know how gas prices and the hard-hit economy have played a role in the decrease of customers during the past year. He has also seen a negative impact in the number of customers during the recent Laughlin River Run.

Like the other restaurants, Gus Oesterle, owner of Antonucci's, said there was an adjustment period of one to two months after the proposition became law, but the law generally has not affected his restaurant.

“There were people who moaned and groaned at first,” he said. “It took a while to adjust.”

People who want to smoke have to go out to the parking lot at least 20 feet from the restaurant's entrance. The economy has impacted sales as much if not more than the smoking ban, Oesterle said.

Shanon Pizzie, manager of Mad Dogs Bar and Grill, said the smoking ban has not hurt their business. The big reason is a smoking patio in front of the restaurant where smoking is allowed. About 30 to 40 percent of the customers go out to the patio to smoke.

Businesses like Perkins Restaurant and Bakery saw a small decrease after the law went into effect, but in the past year, the non-smoking law has not affected sales, Guest Service Manager Jennifer Morris said.

Hooch's River Grill in Topock saw a slight decrease in customers for about a month after the law went into effect, but most of the customers who left came back. The restaurant even picked up new customers replacing some of the customers who did not return because of the anti-smoking law, according to Pam Eldridge, a waitress at the restaurant.

The new law bans smoking from public areas such as bars and restaurants. Other areas include elevators, theaters, libraries, museums, concert halls, buses, doctor office waiting rooms, restrooms and lobbies.

The exceptions are private residences, except those used as a licensed child or adult day care or health care facility. Other exceptions include designated motel and hotel rooms and retail tobacco stores that are physically separated from other areas.

Other exceptions include veteran and fraternal clubs when they are not open to the public, and a theater and film or stage production set that requires smoking in the scene.

Smoking in religious ceremonies practiced by Native Americans is also an exception.

Proposition 201 also increased the tax on cigarettes by 2 cents a pack and allocates the money to the Arizona Department of Health Services.