(Honored by the United States Bowling Congress as one of the TOP TEN feature stories of 2004)
Greeley, Colorado is a college town of 100,000 an hour north of Denver. It covers nearly 60,000 acres of irrigated farmlands, blue-collar homes, and true Americana: simple people who live life the right way. That said, Ed Greeley wants out.
Almost 1500 miles away, in Buffalo, New York, the gritty, industrial, football-crazed town resting on the U.S.-Canadian border, resides a city found on hard work and the simple life. But Tammy Recckio is less than pleased with local government.
To the immediate north of Chicago, in the heart of America’s Midwest, sits Skokie, Illinois—a middle-class community with its share of affluence, but nonetheless grounded in a rich history as one of Chicago’s first suburbs. And there, Jim Hammersmith, is content with life but none to happy with it.
What connects Greeley and Fickes, Buffalo and Recckio, Skokie and Hammersmith is not the bowling centers they own, but the legislation handed to them by local government—more specifically, no smoking bans that have extinguished not only the cigarettes, pipes and cigars but also a chunk of business.
“You Can’t Keep Bleeding”
Tuesday, November 9, 2004 marks the day when this nation elects its second president of the 21st century. It’s decision day for many. But for Ed Fickes of Greeley, Colorado it’s also de-annexation day. He hopes.
Fickes’ Classic Bowling Lanes, a 24-lane, 40-year establishment, sits on the edge of Greeley and neighboring Garden City, the town to which Fickes wishes to “move.” Greeley’s smoking ban, successfully passed by residents in November 2003, prohibits smoking at any location where two or more people are gathered save the private residence. Garden City has no such restriction. Thus, Fickes, who has seen business decline at Classic Lanes in the ban’s short life, wants out. His de-annexation request, the first in the city’s 134-year history, will be on the ballot this November. To the tune of $17,500 out of Fickes’ pocket.
“When all is done this will have cost me around $125,000. And that’s a safe estimate to say for what I’ve paid for attorneys, the election, and other assorted fees,” Fickes said. “This [2004] is also the first year we didn’t have an increase in business. I didn’t even have the money to do summer maintenance. We saw a 15 percent loss to bowling, food, and beverage and the biggest loss was in open bowling.
“Generally, the bowlers don’t come in early anymore to eat before bowling and don’t stay late after their games are over. Nobody seemed to recognize all the issues [the no smoking ban] would create. The games are slower and everybody’s affected. We’ve also heard talk from the ABT that they won’t be back if the ban’s in effect.”
De-annexation wasn’t Fickes’ first attempt to halt the ban’s negative presence at Classic Lanes. He first attempted to convince the Greeley City Council that his $60,000 air filtration system would do the trick. When that measure failed, Fickes was forced to take his struggle the de-annexation route.
“This is a battle I shouldn’t have had to fight,” he said, “because the air system I put in is a quality one. The city was willing to look at amendments but the voters voted. We [the public establishments] did nothing but sit on our hands and watch it pass. I assumed voters were smarter because it’s the strictest ban you could ever have.”
In retrospect, Fickes admits, public establishments such as restaurants, bars, and entertainment venues should have consolidated efforts to inform the public.
“We should have formed a committee of concerned citizens for owners’ rights to allow people to make the choice whether or not to patronize a business and allow smoking. That didn’t happen until after the fact. Nobody seemed to recognize all the issues it would create. And it has been a costly and aggravating mistake.
“I’m doing everything I can for my bowlers—the smokers and non-smokers. I suspect that in time a group will get together to revoke the ban but I can’t wait for that. I felt this special ballot was a necessary step. You can’t keep bleeding.”
“A Proven Hardship”
Recckio’s Bowling Center and Perfect Shot Sports Bar in Buffalo has also felt the sting of New York’s state smoking ban.
Enacted in the summer of 2003, the state’s legislation prohibits smoking in any public place and additionally states that one must be 50 feet from a doorway to light up. Recckio, who took ownership of the center in 1999, anticipated the ban coming and made bold moves. She spent $1.5 million doing reconstruction, adding a sports bar and taking the previous bar away from the lanes to allow bowling its private space. But the moves weren’t enough once the law, a more forceful one than most had expected, was handed down.
“We had been hearing rumors for five months prior and we found out two weeks before the ban became active that it was a done deal. It was done in a closed door, weekend meeting and even our lobbyist for the Bowling Proprietors Association was unaware,” Recckio said.
Immediately, Recckio saw a drop in business and looked for a fix.
“We saw a 50 percent decrease in our bar alone,” she said.
Initially, Recckio called the Erie County Health Department, the organization in charge of enforcing the ban, but saw little progress. She then went to smoking and legislative meetings.
“I felt we weren’t getting anywhere in getting the law rescinded,” she said, “so I tried to come up with some kind of waiver or compromise.”
Recckio sought certain times for smoking, but the city wouldn’t budge. Eventually, they made concessions. The Erie County Health Department allowed waivers to be issued, but the application process was not an easy one for Recckio and her staff.
“The waiver application required about 90 hours of work and is very much like going to an IRS audit. It’s as intricate as doing taxes for the last three years with liquor invoices, canceled checks, and sales receipts,” Recckio said.
And what did the successful waiver application get Recckio? A pair of smoking rooms, each equipped with a negative pressure ventilation system, an alarmed door, and non-smoking brochures.
“It’s been a proven hardship,” said Recckio. “It’s been at least $50,000 just on labor, costs, and loss of business. But besides the monetary losses, you’re taking away enjoyment people need right now. It’s caused some dissension.”
“I Have to Eat It”
At Skokie Lanes, Jim Hammersmith sees his visitors take their puffs at will, but not without a drop in business due to the Skokie, Illinois smoking restrictions. Originally, the Skokie ban prevented anyone under the age of 18 from being in a smoking environment unless accompanied by an adult.
“I was at all the meetings and they told me it was going to be nobody under 18 unless with an adult. And I had no problem with that,” Hammersmith said.
However, an amendment was added, in a move Hammersmith says was personally motivated, to ban all minors from smoking environments. As such, Hammersmith’s two sons—by law—can’t even visit dad at work.
“I’ll have people call and ask about open bowling or such and I’ll have to tell them that everybody must be over 18. We used to have a lot of families who would come in here with their kids—10, 12 years old—but not anymore,” Hammersmith said. “The ban went into effect on July 7, 2003 and in that time period we’ve lost 15-20 percent of business. Thankfully, I have enough people here and this is their watering hole.”
Hammersmith’s contention, as is the case with so many others dealing with smoking bans, is that people can then travel within five minutes of his place to do their bowling.
“It’s actually a foolish move by the village,” he said. “People who live in Skokie have to go spend their money elsewhere. I’m the only bowling alley left in Skokie.”
While Fickes and Recckio took drastic measures to counter the legislation, Hammersmith, who’s owned Skokie Lanes for 26 years, sees no such moves on his part.
“I’m not going to hire a lawyer and deal with all that. They say it’s hard to fight city hall,” said Hammersmith. “If there were others effected by the ban, then I’d try to get people involved in a fight, but there’s not so I have to eat it.”
“People Will Adjust Their Habits”
Nearby Hammersmith’s Skokie Lanes, in the northwest Chicago suburb of Buffalo Grove, is Bill Feldgreber and his eSkape Entertainment. Feldgreber voluntarily made his establishment a non-smoking one upon opening in May 2003.
“We have 60,000 square feet of entertainment space and there’s no smoking except in the bar, which is completely separated from the lanes,” said Feldgreber, whose proactive approach—though not the one most center owners would impose—has been met with success.
Feldgreber’s decision was not an easy one; it came with research, hundreds of conversations, and a constant process of discerning information.
“I went to every single convention possible. I’d ask the questions and get opinions from others. I listened to what they had to say. I was at a seminar recently and some businesses have gone down 40-50 percent,” Feldgreber said. “I look at New York, California, Florida and I see it’s happening and there’s little people can do about it.”
Yet, one tale pushed Feldgreber to the no-smoking side. At one conference, he heard the story of a 60-lane center on an Army base in Texas that went non-smoking.
“That story convinced me that this was the way to go. I said, ‘If they can do it, then why can’t I?’ It was a gut decision and after a year and half we’re happy with that decision. It hasn’t hindered our business. We have over 1400 league bowlers and as we solicited them the question came up. I stood firm with my decision because I believe it’s the right one. Smoking causes a lot of issues.”
Ultimately, however, says Feldgreber, it’s not about smoking or not smoking, but rather the environment you create for the bowlers that will make them take to your lanes over others.
“If you make yourself different than anybody else and make it a special place to be, then people will adjust their habits.”
What to Do? Solutions and Ways to Get Involved
From the stories of Fickes, Recckio, and Hammersmith, it emerges clear that smoking bans can have a nasty effect on business and lead to time-consuming and expensive alternatives to escape the grip of legislation. The trio offers these words of advice to others hoping to protect their business:
Never Assume. “Don’t assume that because something is so restrictive that people will look past it,” Fickes said. “It’s been a shock to me and an expensive shock at that. It’ll likely take two years to recoup all because I assumed the voters were smarter.”
Know Your Lobbyist and Work with the Legislation. “Talk to your government and give your avid opinions,” Recckio said. “And if this does happen, work to get waivers as soon as possible and go through the process with detail and care.”
Be Proactive. Protect your business and avoid any potential hazards by speaking with your local government about ways to keep your establishment the way you want despite any potential legislation. Take control of your destiny and see if you can counter a no smoking ban if one should ever come your way.
Gather with Other Business Leaders. Make sure your interests as well as those in similar business ventures are protected. Educate voters about potential legislation and the far-reaching effects it can have for them and their entertainment. Be prepared for everything, says Hammersmith. Know what the village is planning on doing. Get organized, ask questions, get answers, and check up on everything. And most, don’t take anything too lightly.
