San Francisco bars concerned about possible smoking ban on outdoor patios

A proposed smoking ban on outdoor patios at San Francisco bars is drawing some backlash. A petition is now circulating to fight any changes to the health code.

Some business owners said they worry that if it goes through, it could have devastating impacts to an already struggling industry.

Lex Montiel and his business partner bought the San Francisco Eagle Bar 13 years ago.

"It's been really challenging," Montiel said. "We thought we would be recovering our costs in four to five years. So far, it's still not."

He survived the pandemic, but now, with a recent surge in inflation, he's seeing a decline in business month after month.

"Business has declined, the economy has driven people away," he said. "People right now, the cost of food and other things is more important for other people. That's why I feel it's already affecting our business."

One of the things that may have saved San Francisco Eagle Bar through the tough times may be their outdoor patio space, and some of the popular events it hosts. If the ordinance gets passed, Montiel fears what it will mean for his business.

"I cannot even think about it because it's just terrible," he said. "I think it will really have a hard impact in our business. After the ban originally started for cigarette smoking, business went down, and it never really recovered."

Supervisor Myrna Melgar introduced the proposed ordinance. She declined to comment for this report, but advocates for the ordinance point to the risk secondhand smoke poses to nearby residents, employees, and other patrons. Montiel said if his customers can't smoke here on this patio, they're going to just light up elsewhere.

"Now we're going to have smokers come out to the streets," he said. "You'll have 10, 15, 20 people hanging out smoking. Who's going to clean that? We're going to have to be responsible, obviously."

While state law still allows smoking on bar patios, many Bay Area cities have created local ordinances to ban it. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on this issue later this month or in June.