Other gay bar proprietors await details before taking positions

If the city of Dallas bans smoking in bars, Eddie Bonner fears it would snuff out his four-year-old business.

Bonner, who owns the gay bar Illusions, said unlike other venues, he doesn’t have a patio or balcony where patrons could still light up if the proposed ban goes through. Bonner said there’s no room to build a patio on the property he rents for the bar on Maple Avenue in Oak Lawn, and he can’t afford to move Illusions to another location.

Bonner said if the ban goes through, his customers will opt for other bars where they can smoke in outdoor areas.

“Every employee I have smokes, and I would guess that close to 90 percent of the people who come there smoke,” said Bonner, adding that he’s also a smoker. “People who smoke aren’t going to come there and be inconvenienced like that.”

Bonner said he’s e-mailed every city councilmember, including Mayor Tom Leppert, expressing his opposition to the proposed ban. Bonner has also posted a statement on the Illusions Web site encouraging others to do the same.

“I just feel really strongly that if there are people who strongly support smoke-free bars, then build a smoke-free bar, and make it completely smoke-free,” Bonner said. “Don’t force every bar to do this. Let people make a choice about where they want to go based on whether they allow smoking.”

Other owners of gay bars said they’re waiting to see details of the proposed ban before deciding whether to back it. Because the ban is widely expected to be approved by the council, some bar owners said they’ll try to use their support as a bargaining chip in an effort to influence the final wording and scope.

Leppert and other council members have indicated they plan to take up the proposed ban later this year, possibly as soon as August.

Dallas’ current smoking ordinance prohibits lighting up in restaurants and most public workplaces. However, Leppert and a majority of other council members reportedly support an expansion of the ban to include bars, primarily because secondhand smoke has been identified as a public health risk.

Others cities in Texas, such as Austin and Houston, already have banned smoking in bars.

Michael Doughman, executive director of the Dallas Tavern Guild, said the association of about 20 gay and lesbian bars remains officially neutral on the proposal. Doughman said members will discuss the issue at DTG’s next meeting in early August. But he said that for DTG to take a formal position, it likely would require a unanimous vote.

When DTG supported a proposed ban on smoking inside bars in 2003, some members objected, prompting a change in the association’s procedures. The 2003 ban ultimately exempted bars and nightclubs.

DTG could be a major player in negotiations on the yet-to-be drafted proposal, because it’s the largest association of bars in the city.

“We have some bars that support it, we have some that don’t. So we have to make a decision as to whether we’re going to go with the majority rule, or whether we’re going to take the stand that the individual clubs will take their own stand,” Doughman said.

“When it’s something like this that affects clubs’ business, we try to avoid anything other than a unanimous vote, simply because we don’t want to disenfranchise or desert any of our members.”

Gregg Kilhoffer, president of Caven Enterprises, which owns three gay bars on the Cedar Springs strip, said he’s already met with two Dallas city councilmembers to discuss the proposed ban.

Caven’s nightclubs, J.R.’s, Station 4 and Sue Ellen’s, all have patios that most anticipate would be exempted from the ban. However, some have suggested the council might try to extend the ordinance to include patios and other outdoor areas such as public parks.

“The concern with including patios in the ordinance is, where are these people going to go?” Kilhoffer said, adding that such a measure would create safety concerns. “Are they going to be out on the sidewalk pushing into the streets? Smokers are going to find a place to smoke.”

Kilhoffer said he also has concerns about enforcement and penalties associated with the ordinance.

For one thing, while it’s easy to detect when someone lights up in a restaurant, it’s sometimes more difficult in bars.

“As far as enforcement goes, I truly believe the bar owner should take on some liability, but I also believe the person lighting that cigarette should take on some liability to make it an even playing field,” Kilhoffer said. “I think those are going to be issues we’re going to have to take a look at in the ordinance so that it’s fair to everybody.”

Alan Pierce, co-owner of the Round-Up Saloon and treasurer for DTG, said his business could accommodate an indoor smoking ban by removing the awning that currently covers a room in the back. But Pierce said he’s concerned about potential language that would prohibit smoking within a certain distance of entrances and exits.

“I just have this funny feeling that this is going to happen,” Pierce said of the proposed ban. “We’ve just got to make sure we protect out interests to some extent. If it’s inevitable, then you’ve got to get with the program and try to compromise with them and be a part of writing the law so we’re not totally out in the cold.”

For Bonner, the likelihood that the ban will go through means he’s looking into the possibility of trying to install a patio on the roof, but he said that may be impractical or cost-prohibitive. He said the building that houses Illusions extends to within a few feet of the property line on either side.

“My theory is that if this goes through, and I can’t build something on, I’m just going to have to close,” he said. “I can’t afford to look for another location, so I’d end up closing. It would really hurt to have to close it, but you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. It may be inevitable, but I’m not going down without a fight.”