The Arvada City Council took up the question last week: To smoke or not to smoke in the city’s bars and restaurants?
Is it a case of Big Brother coming down on people if the council passes a ban by ordinance? Should the question be put on the ballot for voters to decide?
The council debated those and other questions when the Jefferson County Department of Health and Environment presented information Feb. 9.
Boulder and Greeley have smoking bans, as do 15 other city or county governments in Colorado. When put to a vote, proposed bans usually pass.
According to the county health department, secondhand smoke kills 60,000 nonsmokers nationally each year. A nonsmokers risk of lung cancer increases 30 percent when living in a home with a smoker. And 10 infants die each year in Colorado because of secondhand smoke, which contains nearly 5,000 chemical compounds.
I will try to keep you up to snuff on the smoking debate as it unfolds in Arvada. It presents a classic case of government trying to do the right thing even though many people don’t believe it’s government’s business.
This headline came from the Coors Courier newsletter, which is sent to employees and retirees of the Golden brewery: Employee Beer-Tasters Needed. That got the attention of the newsroom employees, who rarely get offers like that from the newspaper. It’s not too often that the role of guinea pig draws such favorable attention.
And what about this new mall proposed over in Applewood? Wheat Ridge hopes to annex the land and capture the sales taxes. Do we need more retail? Will it hurt or help our existing retail competitors? As the details unfold, let us know what you think. Drop a line to news
room@jeffconews.com or fax to 303-279-7157.