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Bargoers and bar owners debate both sides of the smoking ban, which goes into effect this summer
Jump to full article: Des Moines (IA) Register, 2008-04-29
Author: juice staff writer
Intro: Amadeo Rossi, owner of The Lift, a smoke-free bar downtown, actively lobbied in favor of the ban. "It's unreasonable that a deadly carcinogen be allowed when we have innumerable laws on public safety," Rossi said. "A bar can't have exposed wiring." The Lift caters to a creative crowd and has a loyal following - one Rossi believes will increase following the ban. "I feel I have a competitive advantage on a level playing field."
Other owners of already smoke-free bars take the opposite side. Soon, walking into every sports bar will feel like walking into The Game in Urbandale. Smoke-free since it opened in August 2006, two big screen TVs dominate the enterance. There's a pool table, shuffleboard - but no ashtrays.
"When I opened, I knew that the trend was kind of going in that (smoke-free) direction," Jeff Fogelson said. Still, he wasn't a proponent of the ban. "I'm going to lose my edge."
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