JANUARY 28, 2010 ISSUE
Smoke-Free and No Complaints in Watauga County
With the enactment of the law banning smoking in restaurants and bars across the state on January 2, www.smokefree.nc.gov was established, to both explain the law and provide a place for citizens to view and to file complaints.
Complaints, which could be anything from patrons feeling an establishment has improper signage to ashtrays left on tables, are investigated by the health department and are not necessarily indicative of a violation of the law, said Teri VanDyke, coordinator of the Northwest Tobacco Prevention Coalition at Appalachian District Health Department.
The website lists the number of complaints filed in each county each week, and, to date, no complaints have been filed in Watauga County, VanDyke said.
The first week—from January 2 to 10—171 complaints were filed statewide, and North Carolina residents filed 198 complaints the second week, she said.
Some local restaurants that allowed smoking before the law went into effect wanted to ban it, but were afraid to lose customers to restaurants that did allow smoking, VanDyke said.
“Now the playing field is leveled,” she said.
VanDyke headed up the statewide Tasty Tuesdays program, sponsored by the North Carolina Tobacco Prevention and Control Branch, in Watauga County. Tasty Tuesdays encouraged people to eat out on Tuesdays in January, both to help out restaurateurs and promote the smoke-free law.
The Boone Area Chamber of Commerce also helped promote Tasty Tuesdays, with its ongoing “Dine Local” focus, said Dan Meyer, chamber president.
“January’s a slow month for most restaurants,” VanDyke said. “We’re hoping that it helped restaurants increase their business.”
Appalachian District Health Department, like many other health departments across the state, distributed coasters purchased by North Carolina Health and Wellness Trust Fund to restaurants that had information about the new law on one side and information about the toll-free quit line on the other side, she said.
The coasters “educate the public and restaurant owners, [and] so far [has] seemed to be a success,” VanDyke said.
For more information about the law, click to www.smokefree.nc.gov.
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