City smoking law could be snuffed
A proposed November ballot measure that is bankrolled by tobacco giant RJ Reynolds and a local business alliance would snuff out Tempe's citywide smoking ordinance, creating a single statewide rule that bans smoking in many public places but permits it inside bars and restaurants.
Although some smokers and bar owners cheer the idea, city leaders in Tempe and other areas with tough smoking rules worry that the less restrictive ballot measure would roll back voter-approved rules.
"It takes power away from the people," said Tempe Councilwoman Shana Ellis. "The people voted on a smoking ordinance."
A second smoking measure expected to be on the ballot, paid for by the American Cancer Society and other health groups, would extend Tempe-style smoking restrictions statewide. The move would make it the baseline rule in cities across the state.
The dueling smoking proposals on the ballot have opened old political wounds in Tempe, where a successful vote to severely restrict smoking in public places, including bars and restaurants, divided the community.
Several Tempe business owners and at least one Tempe council member, Hut Hutson, have come out in favor of the November ballot measure that would allow bar patrons to light up indoors.
Steve Goumas owns Rula Bula, an Irish pub that has flourished despite the Tempe smoking rules. Goumas said he will likely vote for the less restrictive ballot measure.
A few weeks ago, he said, one of Rula Bula's regulars, Robbie Fox, was smoking on an outdoor patio in triple-digit heat when he got sick. An employee put Fox into the beer cooler until he felt better. Goumas said, pointing out that it's not the first time that's happened.
"Patios are not the answer," he said, adding that he doesn't smoke, he doesn't support smoking and 90 percent of his customers don't smoke. That said, he said he would like to serve his smoking customers in an indoor, well-ventilated room.
Tempe's smoking rules, which prohibit smoking in bars and restaurants but allows it on outdoor patios, was passed by voters in May 2002. The restrictions took effect in the midst of an economic downturn in Tempe. There were 22 months of declining sales on Mill Avenue and several bars and restaurants shuttered, according to Downtown Tempe Community, a merchants group.
Now Mill Avenue cash registers are flush, with 36 months of increasing sales downtown, said Rod Keeling, president and executive director of the business group.
Keeling said that from an economic standpoint, "the district has economically prospered" and some bars that closed were particularly vulnerable to the smoking ban and the past economic downturn.
Council members Barb Carter and Mark Mitchell argue that if voters approve the ballot measure that would spread a Tempe-style smoking ban statewide, it would help benefit Tempe business owners who believe that they lost customers to neighboring cities with more lenient smoking rules.
"We are talking about the health and safety of our residents," Carter said. "But we want that health and safety on a level playing field."
Meanwhile, Leland Fairbanks, a physician who was a major figure in Tempe's anti-smoking push, is on the front lines for the health groups who want a similar statewide rule. Fairbanks helped collect 16,000 signatures in support of the ballot measure.
He said he worries that voters will be confused by the competing, more lenient measure.
"It would put smoking in areas that are smoke-free," he said.
State officials are still checking signatures submitted by proponents of both ballot measures. However, it's likely that both will have more than enough names to qualify for the Nov. 7 ballot.
