(CBS) BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. An ordinance banning smoking in nearly all outdoor dining areas in Beverly Hills will go into effect Oct. 1, but a restaurant group opposing it will continue efforts to amend it.
The Beverly Hills City Council voted 5-0 Tuesday night to give final approval to the ordinance, following a 5-0 vote May 29 to give initial approval to the proposal, intended to provide a healthier environment and cleaner air for diners and pedestrians, according to city director of communications Robin Chancellor.
The proposal is opposed by the Beverly Hills Restaurant Association, whose members feel the ban could prompt smokers to eat at restaurants in nearby Los Angeles or West Hollywood where smoking is allowed outdoors, hurting their business and costing Beverly Hills sales tax revenue, according to Executive Director Rudy Cole.
Cole said he would support a statewide ban on smoking in outdoor dining areas, which would put Beverly Hills restaurants on "a more even playing field."
The council agreed with the association to delay implementation of the measure until Oct. 1 so it would not affect the throngs of European tourists expected this summer, Cole said.
The group plans to offer some amendments to the proposal this summer, Cole said.
Smoking is banned in restaurants under state law. Burbank, Calabasas and Santa Monica have adopted outdoor smoking bans.
An exception to the ban is that hotels would be allowed to permit smoking in 25 percent of their poolside dining areas, Chancellor said.
The Beverly Hills proposal provides for a $100 fine for the first offense, a $200 fine for a second offense within one year and a $500 for fine for each additional violation within one year, according to Daniel E. Cartagena, a project manager with Beverly Hills' ***artment of Economic Development.
Cartagena said he expected few tickets would be issued, with diners or staff pointing out the smoking ban, prompting smokers to stop, as has occurred in other cities with similar smoking bans.
"This is significantly self-policing," Cartagena said. The proposal also calls for city staff to evaluate the effects of the measure, including if it results in declining business at restaurants offering outdoor dining and less sales-tax revenue for the city, and another hearing before the council before May 31, 2008.
If the ban caused too many problems, the City Council could repeal the ordinance before May 31, Cartagena said.
The smoking ban proposal stemmed from a suggestion by Councilman Barry Brucker in September following complaints from the public, Cartagena said.
A two-member ad hoc committee consisting of Brucker and Councilwoman Linda Briskman met five times to study the issue and make recommendations to city staff members, who developed an initial proposal that was revised following an April 26 council study session and meetings between the committee, Chamber of Commerce and Beverly Hills Restaurant Association, Cartagena said.
Only a few Beverly Hills restaurants have large outdoor dining areas. One is Caffe Roma, where Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the actor Sylvester Stallone regularly smoke cigars while in the outdoor dining area.
Many restaurants have small tables for sidewalk dining, under a plan adopted by the City Council to give Beverly Hills' business district a "European-style look and feel," Cole said.
Restaurants pay a fee for being able to use the sidewalks and to build barriers, with the understanding that sidewalk tables could be used by smokers, Cole said.
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