Monday, September 22 2008
This story from
News10/KXTV online reports that Jackson, cA is proposing a smoking ban as part of their effort to bring more business into the city's downtown historic district.
In July city officials decided to forgo an estimated $2,500 in revenues a year and disable parking meters along Main Street. Now they're talking about banning smoking.
"It's not a very positive image and a nuisance for some people," said Jackson City Manager Mike Daly. He is co-sponsoring an ordinance that would stop people from lighting up on sidewalks in the historic district.
Daly said, "You go to a football game and nobody is smoking in a venue like that. It's an expectation more than anything else."
Ron Busch agreed. The owner of the Celtic Knot said,"I've owned a business in Jackson for 17 years."
Busch believes smoking is bad for business. "Our customers have talked to us about it. (They don't like) having to detour out into the street to get by people smoking outside our business."
But smoker Anthony Matranaga said city leaders are going too far. "We're losing more freedoms and rights everyday," he said. "Don't we have more important issues to deal with than whether someone has a cigarette?"
Smoking Ban Considered for Downtown Jackson
