Smoking ban could affect number of restaurants, bars

“I think it means great growth for the restaurant and bar industry on the whole,” said, Glenn E. Schneider, legislative chairman for Smoke Free Howard County, a volunteer organization based in Columbia that supported the ban.

The new law, which went into effect Tuesday, prohibits smoking at public meetings, workplaces, newly opened restaurants and bars, concerts, sports events and events such as firework displays and festivals. Restaurants and bars with smoking sections have until June 1 to comply.

Denise King, administrator for the county?s liquor license board, said the ban is not expected to change the number of applications for liquor licenses. Howard does not have a limit on the number of liquor licenses available.

A few new applications are pending, including an Asian restaurant and a liquor store, both of which are not likely to be affected by the new law, she said.

With the ban, fewer bars may open, and new casual dining establishments could increase, said Melvin Thompson, vice president of government affairs for the Maryland Restaurant Association, a state trade group that opposed the ban.

This could tip the balance of new restaurants. More pubs and sports bars are along the Route 1 corridor, for example, and these areas are likely to see a dip in new bars.

Meanwhile, downtown Columbia won?t be affected because more family restaurants are located there, he said.

Schneider said there is still a market for bars, and the ban might bring nonsmokers back to certain restaurants. He pointed to other cities such as New York and Boston that have bans and that haven?t seen a shift in the dining landscape.

In the two years since the smoking ban took effect in Montgomery County, the restaurant industry has seen increased growth, officials said. Revenues were up 19 percent between October 2003 and September 2005.

So far in Howard County, no reports of violations or complaints have been filed, said police spokesman Brandon Justice.

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