No More Smoking Ban In Madison Bars -- No Exceptions

Posted: 8:02 pm CDT June 21, 2005Updated: 7:06 am CDT July 1, 2005

Madison's smoking ban went into effect at midnight. Some bars held special smoking events, such as handing out free cigarettes Thursday night.

Now, there will be no smoking allowed inside Madison restaurants or bars. The city council also ruled there will be no exceptions for cigar bars.

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New ads tout the ban by saying, "clearly a change is in the air." City officials unveiled the new ad campaign last week at the Nitty Gritty bar and restaurant, where the owner is one of the smoking ban's former opponents, Marsh Shapiro.

Shapiro said there's no sense fighting an ordinance that's already on the books, and he wants to help make the transition as smooth as possible.

"There are a lot of people that are going to be upset that probably are used to having a beer and a cigarette or a martini and a cigarette after work or after a sporting event in one of the nice establishments in our community, and they're just going to have to change their habits a little bit," said Shapiro.

Consequences are one thing that won't be in the ads.

The city health department said it's working with establishments to make sure that's not a problem right away.

"The campaign, both in print as well as on radio, will celebrate the upcoming smoking ban and encourage everyone to come out and celebrate, sing, dance, bowl and just have fun in a smoke-free environment," said Shelly Greller, chair of the Tobacco Free Dane County Coalition.

The groups involved anticipate there being a second wave of the ads when University of Wisconsin students start coming back this fall.

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