RODD CAYTON/Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Saturday, February 26, 2005 6:00 pm
Some owners of bars, bars and grills and taverns across Lincoln say their revenue is down so far this year because of the city's smoking ban, enforcement of which started Jan. 1.
There is, however, no consensus on what the ban will mean for the long-term health of their establishments.
Some say the ban has pushed them to the edge of staying in business. Others say they've had some hard times, but are adapting. There's a "wait and see" component as well.
The proprietors say smoking and drinking go together, and if patrons aren't allowed to do the former, they'll find somewhere else to do the latter. That will mean hard times, layoffs and possibly closings, the proprietors say.
A local health department official said it's too early to tell whether the ban is hurting the industry. Citing studies done elsewhere by restaurant guide publisher Zagat and a pair of University of California researchers, Charlotte Burke said smoking bans elsewhere have not negatively affected bars and restaurants.
But the news looks negative in Lincoln, said B.C.'s Pub manager Mary Rauner. She said she's tracking 25 bars and bars and grills, looking for changes in revenues. She said the average, reported to her by bar owners in percentage terms, is a 27 percent drop from January 2004.
On Friday, Rauner said 21 of the 25 bars had reported results comparing business from mid-January to mid-February, 2004 to 2005. The biggest change was a drop of 44 percent, the smallest, a drop of 2 percent, she said.
All the biggest losses were among bars, the smallest among bars and grills that have outdoor smoking areas, she said.
Rauner said at B.C.'s, revenue was down 25 percent from last year the first week of January, and 27 percent the second week. She wouldn't specify more.
Part of the problem B.C.'s faces is that it doesn't sell food, which means it won't be allowed to add an outdoor smoking area, Rauner said, leaving its patrons one unpopular choice.
"Our clients don't want to go out on O Street and smoke cigarettes," she said.
Jack Gross, owner of Duggan's Pub, said the problem for him and other business owners is the loss of regular customers without new visitors to replace them.
He blames the ban.
"I'd love to blame the weather," he said. "But we had the same bad weather last year. We have terrific entertainment and my food is still super."
Gross said he's had to lay off three of his 12 employees and more could go; he said he's also considering cutting back Duggan's hours of operation.
He's had to borrow money to meet his payroll and pay bills, he said, and he's hoping the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department and city government will approve a smoking area on the premises.
The impact of the ban on Duggan's Pub was made clear on Mardis Gras, Gross said.
"We had a bad day Tuesday due to the weather, but the smokers would've come out (anyway)," Gross said. "Cigarettes are their best friends; they go in their car with them, wake up go and go to bed with them."
Big John's Billiards was poised to close its doors due to smoking ban-related losses until its owner found new financing, said manager Laurie Anderson. The cash influx will keep the pool hall open at least a few more months but at reduced hours, she added.
Anderson said league pool players no longer stay for a drink after a match but are "leaving immediately because they can't smoke."
The sale of cigarettes from behind the counter at Big John's has dropped from about 30 packs a week to six or seven packs, Anderson said.
Revenue from video games popular among smokers at Big John's fell from $600 a week to $220, she said.
Revenue at Big John's was down 38 percent from last year in the first three weeks of January, she said.
"Business is horrible," John "Cappy" Caporale, general manager at the Cheerleaders sports bar/nightclub, said.
His former regulars are "going down to Denton because they can smoke," he said.
According to Caporale's records, Cheerleaders January sales were down 32 percent from last year. "February's looking even worse than that," Caporale said, adding that his work force has been cut from 30 to 24, with some working fewer hours.
He has some evidence for those who might say he's unfairly blaming the smoking ban for his woes, he said.
"December 2004 was one of the best months we've ever had," he said.
Bill Kramer, who helps daughter Karla Russell run Lancaster's, says revenue is down so far this year, but he's hesitant to jump to any conclusions.
"It's pretty hard to predict (based on) January," Kramer said. "I really think it's going take six months to be able to tell what kind of effect (the ban) will have."
He said Lancaster's will be putting in a beer garden, not only to accommodate smokers, but because he feels a cluster of people smoking out front is unattractive.
Roger Berner, who owned the Lodge Tavern, has already closed his establishment. It was in a site designated for the Antelope Valley revitalization and flood-control project. Berner said the ban led to his decision to close rather than relocate.
"I can probably buy another bar pretty damn cheap here in another couple of months," he predicted.
He won't be buying the Trackside Bar and Grill in Waverly. Manager Craig Blake says he's seen new faces buying drinks and playing keno at the establishment.
While he's spent money on improving the Trackside's air filtration center, he doesn't see a permanent expansion of its clientele. In fact, he said, better weather might keep customers from leaving Lincoln.
For now, Blake said, his business allows smoking, but it could at some point be forced to show puffers the door as well.
"Who knows what's going to happen with the Legislature," he said. State lawmakers are considering bills that could impose statewide smoking policies that could override Lincoln's more restrictive ordinance.
Roger Patton of Risky's Sports Bar & Grill in University Place said business is down 10 percent to 15 percent, compared to the past three years. He said the ban and weather have combined to make it a tough few weeks.
In results typical of those reported by bars and grills, Patton said food sales at Risky's have picked up quite a bit, while beverage sales have declined. Nonsmokers who hadn't come to his place have come out now, Patton said. He expects the establishment to get back to its usual level of business as the weather gets better. Risky's is also planning a beer garden.
Gross said he's not convinced patrons will return to Duggan's Pub once spring and summer arrive.
"By the time it gets warmer people will have already have developed new habits about where they want to go," he said. "It's hard to get a customer; it's really hard get to them to come back after they've established new habits."
B.C.'s is taking new measures to try to replace some business lost because of the ban, Rauner said. Rauner declined to discuss exactly what the measures are until they are put in place.
At Brewsky's, the impact of the smoking ban is easier to assess, partner Brian Kitten said. Sales at the three Lincoln restaurants are down, but the Omaha Brewsky's is up compared to last year, Kitten said.
In Lincoln, he said, alcohol sales are way down while food sales are way up; the latter he calls a silver lining.
"I'd rather have increased food sales than have them both decrease," Kitten said.
The health department's Burke said her office will be tracking economic data to see what if any effect the ban will have. She said the statistics offered by bar/restaurant owners so far may not be accurate.
"It's fair to look at at least a year's worth of data," she said. "So (the observer is) able to compare one year to another."
Reach Rodd Cayton at 473-7107 or rcayton@journalstar.com.