KHOU-11’s Doug Miller reports that Mayor White and council will take up the apparently pressing issue of smoking in restaurants later this week.
Dermatologist-Councilwoman Gibbs has led the charge on this matter, calling for an outright ban.
We think Mayor White could reclaim this issue, and give it his signature touch. That’s right — why not turn it into a possibility for a new revenue stream?
Ban smoking outright for now. Allow restaurants that meet certain specifications to allow smoking in designated parts of their restaurants. Create a new “Smoking Establishment Permit” and accompanying bureaucracy for the thing! There you go — a new revenue stream AND cleaner air!
Mayor White’s thinking small on this one. In a city that has a sign inspector and that requires delivery trucks to pay for loading zone permits, surely our creative mayor can figure out a way to squeeze restaurants that would like to allow patrons to smoke.
Lest anyone think I’m serious, I don’t support any such move. But would it shock anyone at this point?
