by KYW’s Mike Dunn
A ban on public smoking is now the law of the land in Philadelphia. Mayor Street signed the ban on Thursday morning, though further tweaking of the plan is expected before enforcement begins.
Sources say the mayor was huddled with top aides literally until the eleventh hour, before deciding to sign the smoking ban into law (
see previous story). After numerous discussions over the past day, he decided to sign the measure into law:
“In the end, the health concerns are the overriding issue that really compelled me to sign the bill, and to make sure we send an important message to the people of this city, of this region, and those folks around the country. Even though I do believe the bill is flawed in a very significant way.”
Part of what had the mayor on the fence was his disdain for the provision that exempts outdoor cafés.
Street says he’ll work with Council to address that matter and other concerns, including offering permanent exemptions to small taverns. Also to be clarified is the effective date. Technically, the law goes into effect immediately with the mayor's signature. But as a practical matter, the mayor says, there will be no enforcement until an agreed-upon date.
Councilman Frank DiCicco is pleased the mayor signed the measure, even if further revisions are needed:
“I certainly think it makes life easier for all of us around here. We now have a foundation on which we can work to do any further tweaking of the bill, to do amendments if we can get the nine votes.”
DiCicco says revisions to the law will be addressed in the coming weeks.
KYW's Paul Kurtz sampled reaction at one of the few smokers' havens left in the city.
Ashtrays are placed at every table and along the bar at McGillan's. But they won't be here much longer, and owner Chris Mullins believes his bottom line will take a hit:
"I'm thinking probably ten percent loss of sales based on what we're hearing in cities like Boston and New York City."
Mullins and his wife are already making plans to install awnings for patrons who need to smoke outside.
But Dana Caro of Cherry Hill, NJ is hoping the ban will her battle a pack-a-day habit:
"I don't mind it really, although in principal I'm against it, but I think it'll make it easier for me to quit smoking. So in that sense I kind of feel that it'll benefit me in the long run."
E-Mail Story
Print Story
