Smoking was banned in most public places in Ohio by a 58 percent vote in favor of Issue 5 on Nov. 7 leaving no “if,” “and” or cigarette butt.

Now local business owners are buckling down to ride out the wave of change.

“I don’t think the law will help bar owners, but in the long run I do not think it will hurt us that severely,” said Kamikaze’s owner Rick Alt.

While some business owners, like Alt, do not suspect a huge decline in the number of customers, others like Howard’s Club H owner Jim Gavarone are fearing a negative impact from the passing of Issue 5.

“I think it most definitely will affect business, this is just another blow against small business,” Gavarone said.

In a college town like Bowling Green, where students frequent local bars on weekends, attendance could stay the same.

“I am a smoker and will still go out to the bars on weekends. It’s Bowling Green – what else is there to do?” said Deb Armengau, junior.

Ohio has become the 15th state to pass a smoking ban in public places. Some cities in Ohio, such as Columbus, have had a city-wide public smoking ban for months.

At Spice, a bar located in the Arena District of Columbus, bartender Bryan White has not noticed a decline in patrons since the cities smoking ban came into effect Sept. 26.

“I was here before the ban and my tips have been steady since then. I have not seen a large impact because of the smoking ban in the city, and I don’t think it will have a huge impact on other bars in the state,” White said.

Although the statewide ban will come into effect on Dec. 7, the guidelines for the law will have to be developed by the Ohio Department of Health over the next six months.

“I can see a ban in family places, restaurants even, but in a bar where people are of legal age to smoke and drink, I just don’t understand it,” Gavarone said.

Bars are not the only local businesses that will be directly effected by the ban, restaurants and places of employment will see smoking abolished from their venues.

Sam-B’s manager Kathleen Walker is optimistic about the new law and what it will mean for business.

“Most people want non-smoking seating when they come into the restaurant, so now we can seat more of those people all over the restaurant,” Walker said.

“I am expecting business to get better, and I am delighted that Issue 5 passed,” she said.

Whether the customer is a smoker or non-smoker, the changes implemented by the smoking ban will potentially affect a lot of people.

“When I started at Ohio State as a freshman in 2003, smoking was allowed in bars and I have not seen a change in attendance since the ban,” said Ankita Patel, a senior at OSU. “The biggest noticeable difference is when we leave the bars, we don’t smell like an ashtray, and who can complain about that?”

Bar and restaurant owners are looking to students to keep their attendance levels up and their businesses afloat.

“College bars are different – the students want to go out, and they will regardless of whether they can smoke or not,” Alt said.