CT: Bar closing worries other owners

NorwichBulletin.com ^ | 1-2-04 | FRANCIS McCABE

[Sunshine Sister]

If what you say is true, why did the bar in the story go broke?

[kidd]

FYI -

In January 1993 a deal was made between Governor Weicker and the Pequots which gave the tribe the exclusive right to offer slot machines in return for a yearly payment of $100 million, or 25% of the gross slot revenue - whichever is greater. The agreement was subject to cancellation, however, if the state allowed slot machines anywhere else in Connecticut

In early 1994 the Mohegan tribe signed a compact with the state that allows them to offer casino gambling at their reservation in Uncasville. The Pequots gave permission for the Mohegans to have slot machines in their casino and in return the state lowered the Pequots yearly payment requirements to $80 million, or 25% of the gross revenue - whichever is greater. The same payment schedule also applies to the Mohegans.


IOW - There may be another motivation for the government of Connecticut - to promote casino business

[Phantom Lord]

Did you read my entire post, or stop short and post?

[Spok]

The real outrage is that the people who support these silly laws don't patronize the businesses that are being destroyed because they don't like the smoke. And they accuse conservatives of trying to force their beliefs on others. Unbelievable.

[waterstraat]

Norwich bar owners will still have to compete with private clubs and the two casinos, which are exempt from the smoking ban.

Smokers will go to the private clubs, casinos, and private homes. The rest of the state will fill up the non-smoking bars.

[bert]

They should open the "Church of Baccus" with continual ceremonial incense and othe smoke products along with continuous communal imbibement of various sorts of alcohol. If they want to get rich, the inner sanctum will be darkened and hold the procreation ceremonies.

It was good for a stranger from a strnge land, why not CT?

[waterstraat]

The real outrage is that the people who support these silly laws don't patronize the businesses that are being destroyed because they don't like the smoke.

They should be made to patronize these places, we should poll the state, and everyone that voted for it, or wanted non-smoking, should be required to go to one of these places each week, else a very hefty fine for each week that they dont go to a non-smoking bar. That sounds plenty fair to everyone.

[Sunshine Sister]

Okay. I went back and read it again. I thought you were taking smokers to task rather than non smokers. I get it. Sorry.

[SheLion]

This is pure bull. No way this or any other bar has closed because of the smoking ban. Non-smokers were staying away from bars because of smokers and have come out in droves since the ban, causing business to BOOM!!!

You insist on putting me to work, do you? hehheh!

Check it out:

Businesses Harmed by Smoking Bans

The Facts - Business's Harmed By Smoking Bans

click here

Air is clear, patrons scarce after smoking ban

Oct 8 2003  - Glowach says some non-smokers have started coming to the bar, but not enough to compensate
article here

His Dreams Go Up In Smoke

10-12-03 -A business in the family for more than a century, Roesch's closed its doors on Aug. 31, and the building was put up for sale. Lauterborn, 59, said business at the 178-seat restaurant and bar declined precipitously after the smoking ban was instituted in March.

article here

SMOKING BAN ACCOMPLISHES LITTLE, OTHER THAN BURDENING BUSINESSES
9-30-03 The non-smokers who were supposedly going to flood restaurants and bars once they weren't exposed to the horrors of second-hand smoke aren't going to such establishments any more than they did before July 24, when the nation's strictest indoor smoking ban took effect.

article here

CALIFORNIA: 5-year-old ban in bars leaves owners, customers fuming

5 January 2003

"I think if the government helps me one more time I'll be out of business," Newlove said as most of his customers nodded in agreement.

article here

NYC's Bar Business: Up In Smoke?

23 December 2002

As a manager of a Manhattan bar, I can easily point out the dramatic drop in business which will occur when the ban commences. Not only is my bar going to lose business, but how about the extra security that I'm going to be forced to hire to control people outside of my establishment when they go outside to smoke? Or what about the noise complaints I'll receive due to drunken smokers chatting outside at 3 a.m.?
click here

 

Another one bites the dust.........

Cafe business up in smoke (smoking ban closes restaurant)

20 December 2002-SAVANNAH NY

A ban on smoking has snuffed the life out of their D&S Diner, Susan and Doug Devall say. The owners of the village's only diner, one of the few businesses on Main Street, say they will close for good Dec. 29. They blame Wayne County's no-smoking law, which passed in January.

article here

 

Smoking Bans Burn Business (In Delaware)

15 December 2002

Dan McAvaney, owner of McAvaney's Pub on Kirkwood Highway, said small bar owners have no choice but to fight.

"Another couple of months of this," he said pointing to a nearly empty bar on a Thursday night, "and we go out of business."

article here

 

Tempe (Arizona) bar revenue down 20 percent after smoking ban

27 October 2002

The recently reported sales for August show that bars suffered a 20.4 percent decline and July's collections were off 33.2 percent.
article here

 

The Weymouth (Massachusetts) News, “Smoking ban burns business in bars,” 3-20-02:

“The new Board of Health regulation banning smoking in public places is killing their business, restaurant owners told the Town Council Monday night.” Business is down 50 percent since the ban went into effect.

Likewise in Ames, Iowa, several restaurant owners suffered when a ban was implemented in August 2001. (“Business Falling Due to Tobacco Ordinance,” Ames Tribune, 1-5-02)

"I don’t know what the current situation is in Wareham, Massachusetts, but when a smoking ban went into effect back in October, 2000, Board of Health Chairman Ralph R. Thompson admitted that “he and his fellow board members weren’t aware of just how devastating the ban’s impact would prove to be on area businesses.” (“Wareham smoking ban rescinded,” Standard-Times, 12-20-00)."

• NUTSHELL TAVERN, Rte 1, Biddeford, Maine closes its doors due to smoking bans.
•  

• Press Herald News, January 6, 2000 * MINGLES COFFEE SHOP, Kitchener, closes after non-smoking bylaw passed--45% drop in business Kitchener-Waterloo Record, July 31, 2000
•  
• * TWELVE RESTAURANTS CLOSE in Brookline, MA , after smoking ban decimates business Lowell Sun, March 28, 2001
•  
• * In British Columbia, 200 WORKERS in 46 establishments have lost their jobs because of the smoking ban National Post, March 3, 2000
•  
• * Hotelier Don Ritaller, Victoria, fired his entire staff of 12
•  
• * J. P. MALONE'S PUB in Richmond, laid off eight of its 20 employees
•  
• * CLYDE'S RESTAURANT GROUP, one of the most popular and successful restaurants chains in the Washington DC area since 1963, suffered a staggering loss of sales after smoking was banned
•  
• * A survey of 300 alcoholic beverage serving operations in California, selected at random from a list of 7,216 shows that 60% experienced a decrease in business averaging more than 30%; 7% showed increased business averaging 8%. Guest Choice Network + 50.4% of the respondents indicated an increase in customer complaints/fights; + 65.0% indicated a loss of regular customers; + 59.0% indicated a loss of tips/gratuities for the bar and/or serving staff.
•  
• * THE DULUTH GRILL has closed after 16 years due to the smoking ban Duluth News
•  
•  * 130 TOBACCONISTS in California have been forced to close since the 1998 smoking bans and punitive tax increases SF Gate, July 1, 2001
•  
• * Thousands of employees have had their hours cut, and hundreds have lost their jobs because of the loss of the smoking customers who form a majority of their customer base.
•  
• " Dread, pink slips greet smoking ban ," Globe and Mail, December 29, 2000
•  
• * A recent study from British Columbia pointed out major economic and job losses after a provincial smoking ban took effect in January: After 80 days of the bylaw, 730 EMPLOYEES were let go , 9 BUSINESSES CLOSED and more than $16 MILLION was lost . The Ottawa Citizen Online, August 27, 2001
•  
• * Letter from a waitress in BC: " My livelihood is being jeopardized for my own protection, and I never asked to be saved ."
•  
• * A hotel-industry study released this week shows that San Francisco's hotel-occupancy rates have shrunk to 1994 levels. City hotels are operating at 74% capacity. Rooms priced at more than $160 are about 69% full. While those numbers aren't disastrous, they are a far cry from the stuffed hostelries we've been used to the last few years. San Francisco Examiner, April 19, 2001
•  
• * TWO MORE RESTAURANTS have closed in Weymouth, MA : J.C. Grear's in South Weymouth and the Aloha in Hingham. A fourth restaurant said business is way off. Weymouth News
•  
• * Corvallis, OR: Employment at the Peacock has dropped from 50 to 14. Owner John Carter says the business has lost 38 percent of its lottery income and more than half of its basic bar revenue since the law took effect State records support Carter's lament about lost business. The Register-Guard, September 24, 2000
•  
• * Clergymen complain that 40 BINGO HALLS have closed because of the smoking ban. These halls supported local charities. Sun-News, February 7, 2001
•  
• * BUD'S PLACE in Cambridge and said his sales have fallen 23 per cent since the smoking ban was implemented. His staff has shrunk to 12 from 17 and a full-time employee he's had on staff for 10 years has been cut back to three shifts a week " Restaurateurs rebel against smoking bans " The New-Standard, December 10, 2000
•  
• * Wareham rescinds smoking ban when restaurant owners prove business decreased 25-40%. "We knew it would hurt," Board of Health Chairman Ralph R. Thompson said of the board's decision to implement the ban, adding that he and his fellow board members weren't aware of just how devastating the ban's impact would prove to be on area businesses. Representatives from Wareham's Elks club said the ban had cut the attendance at their weekly bingo nights in half, crippling their ability to raise funds for scholarships and other civic endeavors . Standard-Times, 12/20/2000
•  
• Last Spring (just in time for tourist season), the same three anti-smoker members of Wareham's Board of Health put the smoking ban back in place.  Wareham is now smoker UNfriendly and
  restaurants, bars, and clubs and organizations are suffering. :-(
•  
• * In Washington State a smoking ban at the Spokane Interstate Fair went down in flames Monday after attendance dropped by roughly 22% (despite perfect weather) and county commissioners were deluged with calls and letters of protest. "Fair policy up in smoke," Dan Hansen, Spokesman-Review, 9/14/99
•  
• * Susan Barnes of the WATERWORKS RESTAURANT in Rockland ( Maine ) said she has lost more than $8,000 a month in liquor sales to other establishments since the restaurant smoking ban went into effect. Bangor Daily News, February 5, 2000
•  
• * Peter Martin, owner of John Martin's MANOR RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE in Waterville, said he proclaimed all Sundays in January to be no-smoking. Food and beverage sales dropped 25 percent and off-track betting revenue dropped 30 percent , he said Bangor Daily News , February 5, 2000
•  
• * ''On Saturday night, we had a band, two bartenders, two waitresses, a doorman, a floor man, and we grossed $33,'' said Dorsey Carey, manager of HANDLEBAR HARRY'S bar/restaurant in Cordage Park, after smoking was banned.. Boston Globe Online, September 9, 2001
•  
• * Owner of the CHATEAU LAFAYETTE, Jill Scott, said: "People can't say this isn't hurting us. I've closed down my kitchen and cut five shifts . I don't know where people are going, but they aren't here." Ottawa Sun, Tuesday, October 2, 2001
•  
• * After smoking bans were implemented, the number of Buffalo BINGO ESTABLISHMENTS dropped by about 20 percent, while city bingo fee revenues declined by 36 percent, according to officials. The Buffalo News, By BRIAN MEYER, News Staff Reporter, 7/24/01
•  
• * Mesa, AZ, banned most restaurant smoking in 1996. THE MARQUEE, the ZUR-KATE and ARIZONA JACK'S are the exceptions. They demonstrated that they lost so much business as a result of the ban that they were allowed to permit smoking. The Washington Post, Monday, February 19, 2001; Page A03
•  
• * The most recent Gallup poll on smoking, November 13-15, shows that even in the current climate more than half of Americans, 53%, still want to allow smoking sections in restaurants; a solid majority still favors the preservation of smoking areas in the workplace, 63%, as well as in hotels and motels, 72%. "...it really comes down to whether or not we have a right to tell private business owners what they can do in their own business." Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, The Cabin, September 6, 2001

 

[Phantom Lord]

You did the same thing Sunshine Sister did. You stopped reading. Now, return to my post and read THE WHOLE THING!

[compuguru]

I think a look at the money trail is in order. Does the State get more money per capita from the casinos than from bars? Is a ban in a county (such as Pierce County, WA) a political payoff to the casino-running Indian tribes in the county?

[VRWC_minion]

They couldn't compete before with the Casino's, they were doomed anyways.

[Leatherneck_MT]

and just when you thought things couldn't get any worse.

Carrie Nation is resurrected.

Look at this

http://www.intowner.com/fr/editorial/February1999.htm

[VRWC_minion]

THe competition put them out.

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For the ultimate VIP experience, visit Ultra 88 Dance Club. A 30,000 watt Avalon Series Sound System pumps out house and techno deep into the night. Learn more about Ultra 88 Dance Club
The gaming continues on the big screens at Mohegan Sun's very own sports bar. Snacks are served at this relaxed and comfortable spot that features non-stop sporting action.
Watch and play your favorite games at the bar while you enjoy one of several legendary micro-brews prepared right at Mohegan Sun.
Wombi Rock, an amazing three-story crystal mountain, houses the exquisite Leffingwells martini bar. Choose from over 50 specialty martinis created by Mohegan Sun's own "mixologists."
Enjoy a cocktail with your friends in front of Taughannick Falls, an 85-foot indoor waterfall flowing down to Chahnameed's Island.
Before the Cabaret curtain rises and the show begins, relax and enjoy your favorite drink at the uniquely designed Cabaret Bar.
Located in the Casino of the Sky, the Star Bar offers a full menu of beer, wine and liquors with convenient viewing of the latest news, weather and sports. Plus, video slot machines are located right on the bar for your gaming entertainment.

[philetus]

Kevin Graff Candidate for Town Council


http://www.glastonburydemocrats.org/2003/graff.html

[SheLion]

You did the same thing Sunshine Sister did. You stopped reading. Now, return to my post and read THE WHOLE THING!

 

OUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SO Sorry!  My mistake for sure!!!!!  And you made me go to all that work and that wasn't even the WHOLE list!!!!!!!! heh!

[SheLion]

I think a look at the money trail is in order. Does the State get more money per capita from the casinos than from bars? Is a ban in a county (such as Pierce County, WA) a political payoff to the casino-running Indian tribes in the county?

In what state? I know they have racinos at the race track in southern Maine. The Indians wanted to open up a huge gorgeous Casino in the middle part of the state, but the voters shot it down. As for the revenue's bars versus Casino's.........I have NO idea.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

"I find it hard to believe he wouldn't tough it out for another few months,"

Yup. That'd be a good line to use on his creditors when they come calling to collect on past due bills;

"But I'm 'toughing it out' dontcha see? Give me a couple more months."

This guy Graff is a pinhead. A dangerous pinhead.

[SheLion]

Carrie Nation is resurrected.

Thanks for that link. People have predicted all of this for so long, and no one listens. At least, no one listens until it's on their on door step, then it's usually too late.

[SheLion]

This guy Graff is a pinhead. A dangerous pinhead.

Dangerous? Yes. A control freak? Yes. A spin meister? Ohhhhhhhh yes. And the non-smoking general public believes this monster. He is choking the economy of CT!