> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Merchants look for smoking gun Irked by being left out of loop, business owners slam ban - URL: https://www.smdp.com/merchants-look-for-smoking-gun-irked-by-being-left-out-of-loop-business-owners-slam-ban/ - Published: 2006-08-01T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T19:06:59.000Z - Author: Kevin Herrera - Tags: Business, Montana, #archive-import *7 Merchants wanted heads up about butting out* CITYWIDE — Scores of business owners were never contacted by City Hall as attorneys hammered out the details for a sweeping smoking ban that could dramatically affect the bottom line of restaurants,cafes and pubs. Members of the Montana Avenue and Main Street merchants associations and the Pico Improvement Organization said they were caught off guard last week when the City Council asked in-house attorneys to draft the ban, which would make smoking nearly impossible in all commercial corridors in Santa Monica. If the ban is approved in the coming months, smoking will no longer be permitted along the Third Street Promenade or at any of the farmers’ markets. Smoking also will be prohibited in all outdoor dining and services areas, and within 20 feet of any entrances or windows open to the public. Smoking already is prohibited in the city’s parks, beaches and on portions of the Pier. Violators can face fines of up to $250. “It’s troubling to see that those who are providing advice to the council don’t always touch base with those affected parties first before taking action,” said Charles Donaldson, a resident of Sunset Park and chairperson of the Pico merchants group, which stretches from the eastern end of the city to Ocean Front Walk.“Personally, I think this ban is like using an elephant gun to kill a mosquito. I don’t think smoking is that much of an issue in Santa Monica. But the point is, we should have been consulted.” City officials said it is their policy to contact as many people as possible who will be impacted by an action taken by the council, however, total saturation is often impossible as the outreach relies heavily on word of mouth. In regards to the smoking ban proposed, Deputy City Attorney Adam Radinksy said he held meetings with representatives of the Chamber of Commerce, Bayside District and Pier Restoration corporations, the Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the California Restaurant Association months before the ban was brought before the council for debate. Radinsky said the Apartment Owners Association of Greater Los Angeles also was contacted to gauge what support, if any, existed for a ban on smoking in apartments and other housing where people are living in close quarters and exposed to secondhand smoke. “We tried to cover the different areas of businesses and organizations that could be covered by the recommended (ordinance),” said Radinsky, who started the investigative process for the ban in February following a report by the California Air Resources Board that found secondhand smoke to be highly toxic. “We felt we had a sampling of the kinds of organizations that might be covered,” Radinsky said. “We certainly didn’t mean to leave any organization out and we will be doing additional outreach in the coming weeks and months as we go through the next phase of the process.” Kathy Dodson, president of the chamber, said she met with Radinsky, at which time staff in her office sent out notices along with a survey to members. However, there are many businesses which do not belong to the chamber that will be affected by the ban, and “the city should have contacted (them) at a minimum,” Dodson said. During last week’s council meeting, only one restaurant owner showed up to speak out against the proposed ban. He was overwhelmingly outnumbered by supporters of a smoke-free Santa Monica. Council members commented on the lack of opposition, which could have been caused by the lack of notification, Dodson said, or the fact that it was only a discussion item and not the first reading of an actual ordinance. “That might have confused some people,” Dodson said.“I can expect more input when this comes back to the council.” That does not necessarily mean more opposition to the ban. According to a survey conducted by the chamber, 61 percent of respondents said they favored a ban on smoking in outdoor dining areas. Sixty-three percent favored the 20-foot, non-smoking radius around building entrances. Kathleen Rawson, executive director of Bayside, said it is hard to put out an advanced warning to members because City Council agendas are sometimes not available until a couple of days before the meeting. Rawson said the Bayside board did debate the ban in a public forum and there was an article about it in the organization’s “Bayside Beat” publication. The Bayside board voted against the proposed ban, 7-1. There have been complaints in the past that City Hall has kept residents, property owners and other interested community members in the dark about certain actions, but Dodson said communication has recently improved. “Last year, I don’t think they would have even bothered to come to us, so it’s getting better,” Dodson said. “But at the same time, this (ban) is going to affect a lot of businesses because it basically means no smoking at all in the major corridors like Wilshire and Santa Monica (boulevards).” One such business is El Cholo, a popular Mexican restaurant on Wilshire Boulevard that has nine tables, or 40 seats, dedicated to outdoor dining where patrons are allowed to smoke. There also is a waiting area outside for tobacco enthusiasts. “Do we want to push people out to the corner of Wilshire and 11th Street so they can smoke cigarettes and have the butts drop into the street and, in turn, have them going into the bay?” asked Dawn Schlegel, the restaurant’s manager. “I like compromise and I think that smoking outdoors is a great thing for those who want to smoke when they go out to dine. We only had 40 seats compared to 300 inside (the restaurant), so we felt this was a good compromise. Taking that away would be detrimental to a lot of businesses.” Schlegel, a member of the chamber, said she received no notification of the ban. Just because the chamber was notified doesn’t mean other businesses will be, said Gary Gordon, executive director of the Main Street Merchants Association. “We’ve spent years trying to correct this impression that if people in city departments are reaching out to the chamber, they are reaching out to Main Street,” Gordon said. “We are two separate organizations … There’s certainly some overlap, but if you tell the chamber something, you haven’t told us.” Main Street is expected to be hit especially hard given its eclectic collection of cafes, small restaurants and neighborhood bars, where patrons often smoke on patios or near the entrance of businesses. At the Urth Caffe on Main Street, a business which was one of the first to prohibit smoking outdoors, co-founder Shallom Berkman said he didn’t find out about the ban until an organization supporting it contacted him asking him to sign a letter of support. He refused. “We believe in being a health-conscious model business, but we are 100 percent opposed to government ordinances banning smoking,” Berkman said. “We really believe in American principals that people and businesses have the right to choose if they want customers to smoke or not. Americans should be able to make their own choices … If City Hall wants to take away freedoms, people should be notified and have the chance to speak out. Those who enjoy smoking should be on the front lines to defend their rights.” Debbie Kramer, a manager at Rick’s Tavern on Main Street, said she doesn’t expect business to decline if the ban is approved, however, she did say the ban “sucks.” “Folks are not going to stop coming out because they can’t smoke,” Kramer said.“It definitely puts the pressure on us to tell people where they can and can’t smoke.” Kramer said a fear of losing business surfaced two years ago when City Hall began enforcing a law banning smoking in all public buildings. That fear never materialized. Mayor Pro Tem Bobby Shriver, along with City Councilman Kevin McKeown, who both voted in favor of the ban, said they were surprised to hear many business owners were left in the dark regarding the ban, given the media coverage and outreach to the chamber and Bayside. Both said they are eager to hear from the businesses when the issue comes back before the council. The earliest that could happen is sometime in September or October, Radinsky said. In the meantime, representatives from the three merchants associations plan to meet today to discuss any future action. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 1, 2006.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/080106.pdf?ref=smdp.com)