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ch-scene - Re: smoking-in-bars survey at NewRaleigh

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Subject: RTP-area local music and culture

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  • From: Nathaniel Florin <npflorin AT gmail.com>
  • To: RTP-area local music and culture <ch-scene AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: smoking-in-bars survey at NewRaleigh
  • Date: Tue, 10 Mar 2009 10:44:41 -0500

I was living in Cambridge when smoking bans were put into effect in Boston and eventually the surrounding areas. There were studies done afterwards that suggested that restaurant revenues went up by something like 9 or 10%, while alcohol sales stayed more or less flat (both in a then-growing local economy). However, four of my five favorite bars all rapidly went from thriving to defunct (two later reopened with the same name but in somewhat different forms). There's probably a profile to be drawn of the sort of place that died, but other than to say that all of the casualties I knew were neighborhood-based, it's easier to say that places that did fine seemed to be ones with some combination of young crowds, real restaurants, shows, DJs, dancing, and sports on TV.

The point is that I think one can argue that a ban will have little or no net effect, but not that it will have no effect.

Nate






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