All of this area’s largest cities have tough smoke-free laws, with the regrettable exception of Kansas City, Kan.
It’s time for Unified Government Mayor Joe Reardon and the commission to step forward and protect residents from harmful smoke.
A recent public opinion survey showed nearly two out of three residents of Kansas City, Kan., support a smoking ban. That’s a powerful mandate for action in Wyandotte County.
On Thursday, the Unified Government Board of Commissioners is expected to discuss several smoke-free options that would cover Kansas City, Kan., as well as Edwardsville and Bonner Springs.
The best approach would be to prohibit smoking in all public places, including restaurants and bars.
In addition, the law should ban smoking on the gambling floors of any casinos in the county when other area casinos take similar action. Kansas City voters endorsed that kind of language in an April election.
Unfortunately, Reardon has had qualms about passing a strict ordinance, saying he would not “put our Kansas City, Kan., businesses at an economic disadvantage.”
That argument is moot now that every other large local city has a strong no-smoking policy affecting bars and restaurants. In the recent opinion survey, 63 percent of Kansas City, Kansas, residents endorsed a smoke-free law. While 49.4 percent thought bars and private clubs should be exempted, city officials have a responsibility to protect the health of workers and customers in those businesses.
Kansas City, Overland Park, Olathe, Independence and Lee’s Summit all prohibit smoking in bars. So there’s no “economic disadvantage” for it to be banned in taverns in Wyandotte County.
With the proper leadership from elected officials, the county’s residents soon could join the rest of the region in breathing cleaner air.
Delicious
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Great idea
It's about time that the hardworking folks in WyCo had the same right to a smoke-free work environment as most of the rest of the area.
USRNSF
You are absolutely correct of course, but the anti-smoking Nazis will stop at nothing to have their way.
I think you will see a comeback of "private clubs", not open to the public.
Private Business Owners Have Rights Too!
The fact is if you look at KC as an example Pool Halls, Sports Bars and the like have seen thier customer numbers and income drop by as much as 30% due to the smoking ban. Those customers are coming to KCK and Bonner Springs. In one example a local poolhall / bar and grill in KCMO near Englewood Rd saw a 25% drop in income in the first weeks after the smoking ban went into effect. While a similar establishment in Bonner Springs where smoking is still allowed experienced a 15% increase. These are estimates from service people interviewed at the respective locations. and while I don't smoke my wife does and we are one group of customers that migrated. These are private businesses and they have the right to decide who thier target customer is and how to best market to them. Whether thats a smoking or non-smoking environment or a mix of the too should be up to the business owner not the government. Frankly WYCO businesses like the extra money so why screw it up.
Two men shot to death in KCK
Three women raped.................and alphabet's comment would be,"that's all right as long as they aren't smoking those nasty cigarettes in KCK"
Get a life alphabet, and quit trying to regulate the behavior of your fellow man, it is really bush league.
You cover up the over appraisals,
you ignore the fact that a house in the NE section of WYCO is taxed at 280% of the value of a million dollar property in Leawood (holding mill levies constant,and they're not) and then come up with BS like this and you wonder why you're irrelevant and sinking like a stone.
Concern yourself with the real issues of WYCO and then come talk to us about your hippy dippy elitist crap like this.