Gov. Kaine’s smoking ban sparks local debate

Lynchburg News & Advance
Published: January 12, 2008

At the back of a busy smoking section in Country Kitchen Thursday, Bill Hawley was running the cash register with one hand and holding his pipe with the other.

He thinks smoking policies should be set by restaurants, not the governor.

"As many eating places as it is around, and so many of them non-smoking, why will they let one man decide for everyone else-" said Hawley, the owner of the Lakeside Drive restaurant.

"You've got your choice which one you eat in."

Across town at La Villa on Timberlake Road, owner Rebecca Digiovanni said her restaurant went smoke-free a year ago and hasn't looked back.

"Last week I went to a random restaurant, and that's all you could smell: smoke," she said. "You couldn't smell the food. You could just smell smoke.

"When you walk into my restaurant, you smell the food."

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine's call last week for a statewide smoking ban in restaurants and bars has reignited a hot debate in Central Virginia.

Most everyone, it seems, has an opinion - and a strong opinion at that.

The proposal to snuff out restaurant smoking has lit up online message boards and sparked comment over meals throughout Lynchburg-area restaurants. The News & Advance has fielded several dozen comments at its Web site, newsadvance.com, with more coming in each day since Kaine's announcement on Jan. 7.

"The sooner, the better!" says one.

"What's next-" asks another. "What will he try to ban in our home-"

This issue has come up before - Kaine pushed for a similar ban last year - and local restaurants have been watching and weighing both sides of the argument.

Carol's Place, a popular Forest eatery that re-opened last year, has found a way to cater to both sides.

Rodney Williams, one of the managers, said they considered banning smoking, but chose not to because so many clients smoke on their lunch breaks.

"We're a very diverse restaurant that has to appeal to a lot of people," Williams said.

But they did declare weekends smoke-free, to appeal to families.

That practice has brought a new lineup of weekend customers. "We've had people in here we've never seen before," Williams said.

He said people would probably get used to it if smoking is banned from all restaurants, but it could hurt his restaurant's lunch crowd.

Kimberly Watson lights up in Carol's Place frequently. "No Smoking" signs keep her out of other restaurants.

Her friend Natalie Hunt, a Lynchburg non-smoker, said she doesn't mind breathing the same air as smokers.

"I come out to eat with her and to hang out," Hunt said. "If she has to go outside just to smoke, it's an inconvenience."

Donna Fuqua, an employee at Carol's who smokes, is trying to see both sides of the issue.

"If they want to have non-smoking restaurants, that's fine," Fuqua said. "But they need to have smoking restaurants, too."

Just down the road from Carol's, at the Cavaliers' Corner shopping center, Lori's Italian Grill & Pizzeria plans to go smoke-free Feb. 1.

The owner and manager decided on that in December.

"We figured that sooner or later, the whole state will go non-smoking," said manager Jimmy Gratto. "I think it's a good thing."

Gratto smokes, but smoking restrictions don't keep him away from restaurants. "I go in to eat, not to smoke," he said.

He said most Lori's customers are in favor of the policy.

Kaine proposed similar legislation last year, which lawmakers rejected. They said it was too broad, and would have ended smoking at county fairs or anywhere else people pay for prepared food.

This time around, Kaine's proposal would ban smoking in areas inside restaurants and public and private clubs where food is prepared, served or eaten. It allows businesses to have smoking sections outdoors.

In announcing his proposal last week, Kaine cited concern over the health risks associated with second-hand smoke, which the state Department of Health estimates is responsible for 1,700 deaths each year in Virginia.

Before La Villa hung its "No Smoking" sign a year ago, the lines for the non-smoking section had been getting too long.

The restaurant polled its customers and decided they would support the change.

Digiovanni said while some people have reacted negatively, most have not and her business jumped at least 30 percent.

"Some people come in and just rave that we made that decision," she said.

Her husband Michele said he usually opted for non-smoking sections, even when he was a smoker.

That's why he believes restaurants will survive even if smokers have to leave their habit

outside.

"I really wish they would pass it," he said.

Country Kitchen has a back room for a non-smoking section, but "we have as many, or more, smokers as we have non-smokers," Hawley said.

A ban on smoking would hurt his business, he said. He said bars would be hurt even more.

Kaine's new legislation defines a restaurant as any place where food is prepared and served. That means bars that serve food would go smoke-free if Kaine gets his way.

Watson thinks that's ridiculous. "And bars," she said. "You have to smoke in bars."