Study: Smoking ban improves sales at restaurants, bars

A University of Missouri study shows air quality has improved and taxable sales at restaurant and bars have risen since the Springfield Smokefree Air Act went into effect two years ago.

The study compared the air quality at 11 Springfield venues before and after the smoking ban went into effect. The study shows that pollution levels in those areas dropped 80 percent, upgrading the air quality from “very unhealthy” to “moderate,” categories established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to judge air quality, according to a news release.

According to the Missouri Department of Revenue, taxable sales at restaurants and bars increased 3.5 percent from 2010 to 2011. During the span between 2011 and 2012, the category of restaurants and bars rose to 5.1 percent, outperforming retailers by 1.5 percent.

Polled Springfield business owners said they have seen improvement at their facilities.

Finnegan’s Wake co-owner Tom Muetzel said sick calls decreased by roughly 70 percent after the ordinance went into effect. Muetzel said sales increased by 16, 20 and 20 percent the first three months under the ordinance.

Patton Alley Pub owner Eric Zackrison said revenues rose 3 to 5 percent out of a larger overall revenue increase during the first year of the ban. Zackrison noted customers who stopped coming to the bar returned once the Springfield Smokefree Air Act went into effect.

Springfield isn’t alone in adopting smoke-free ordinances. Since 2003, 2,245 ordinances have been placed in communities, bringing the total from 1,631 to 3,876, according to the release.

Cardiologist David Meyers of the University of Kansas School of Medicine led a 2009 study that found hospitalizations for heart attacks fall on an average 17 percent the first year a smoking ban is applied in a community.

Springfield's smoking ban was approved by voters in June 2011, and after an attempt at a repeal, was upheld by voters a year later, according to Springfield Business Journal archives.