Wausau, WI to Ban Smoking in Restaurants [04/13-4]

Excerpts from: Council approves ban on restaurant smoking

By Rick LaFrombois Wausau Daily Herald [04/13/05]

Wausau's City Council has delivered on its promise to ban smoking in restaurants.

The Council passed an ordinance 10-2 on Tuesday that will ban smoking in restaurants one month after the city publishes the ordinance in the Daily Herald. Having an ordinance published typically takes less than a week, said City Clerk Kelly Michaels-Saager.

That means patrons at about 90 city restaurants - many of which already ban smoking - could be forced by mid-May to go without smoking during their meals at any Wausau restaurant. Bars are excluded from the ban.

The question remains whether restaurants in the city will gain business or lose it to restaurants in nearby communities that allow smoking in restaurants. The Council did not study that issue, which is why Alderwoman Deb Hadley opposed the ban. Alderwoman Christine Van De Yacht also voted against the ban.

Hadley all along has opposed a government-imposed ban, saying the decision should be left up to residents to choose whether to frequent restaurants that allow smoking.

After a majority of voters in a November referendum favored a ban on smoking in restaurants, Hadley pushed to study a ban's economic impact.

Members of the anti-smoking group FreshAir, who applauded the city's decision Tuesday, have said that they chose not to target bars because they figured that such a move would generate stronger opposition.

City Alderman Marty Welles, who also is vice chairman of the Marathon County Board of Supervisors, said he attempted to initiate a countywide ban on smoking in restaurants but got no support at the county level.

As for studying the ban's economic impacts, Alderman Ed Gale, who led the crafting of the ban, said that by going to referendum in November, the City Council chose to bypass such a study.

Under the ordinance, restaurant owners can receive an exemption from the ban after six months if they prove by certified audit that they have lost 10 percent or more in sales by not being able to allow patrons to smoke.

The city's police department will enforce the ban, which can lead to hundreds of dollars in fines for violators, including restaurant owners.

By supporting the ban, Aaron Baumgardt went against the majority of voters' wishes in his 11th District, which was the only district of 12 that opposed the ban. Baumgardt, who has recently battled leukemia, said he voted his conscience.

"All you have to do is come with me and sit in a cancer clinic for three months and know how important this is," he said.

Alderman Jim Brezinski said that the city ban on smoking will set a good example for local youths.

"The old saying that actions speak louder than words has never been more true than in this case," he said.

Those actions also were not lost on Jill Ness, a member of SmokeFree Wisconsin, a statewide anti-smoking group based in Madison. Ness, whose group paid FreshAir coordinator Mary Kay Rudolph's salary, attended Tuesday's City Council meeting.

"Number 21," she said as people filed out of the meeting. Ness said 21 referred to the number of Wisconsin communities, including Wausau, that have recently banned smoking in some type of public place.

"This is a growing trend and communities are interested in this all over," she said.

When asked whether SmokeFree Wisconsin would next push for a ban in communities adjacent to Wausau, Ness replied, "If I get a call from Weston we will."

This information is presented as a public service by:

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH)
2013 H Street NW / Washington, DC 20006 / (202) 659-4310
A national nonprofit, scientific and educational organization founded in 1967.
All donations are fully tax deductible.

Material on this page may be freely reproduced, distributed, and circulated
with attribution given to Action on Smoking and Health.

Dedicated to Mr. and Mrs. Warren Wells