May 11, 2007  |  By: LOU CHIBBARO J  | COMMENTS     

Five of the nine D.C. gay bars, restaurants and nightclubs responding to an informal Washington Blade survey said they have experienced a decline in revenue and customers as a result of the city’s new smoking ban, which took effect Jan. 2.

One of the establishments, the DIK Bar, located on 17th Street, N.W., was the only one of the gay establishments to report an increase in both customers and revenue. The Fireplace, a gay bar on P Street, N.W., reported a modest increase in customers and no change in its revenue.

Titan’s Ramrod, located on 14th Street, N.W., reported no change in the number of customers or revenue from the smoking ban.

Four establishments catering to a mostly gay clientele, including Annie’s Paramount Steak House, Be Bar and Halo, voluntarily opened or changed into non-smoking places before the city’s smoking ban began and said they have seen no changes in patronage or revenue since the ban took effect.

But another eight gay of a total of 23 establishments in the city catering to gays did not return calls inviting them to participate in the survey, a development that Washington gay nightlife advocate Mark Lee said is not surprising.

“The word out among insiders in the nightlife and hospitality industry across the city is almost everyone has had a drop in business because of this,” Lee said. “For PR reasons and for competitive, proprietary reasons, most establishments don’t want to talk about this publicly.”

Earlier this month, the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, which represents restaurants and bars, released the findings of its own survey, which showed more than 35 percent of those responding reported a decline in revenue since the smoking ban took effect. Its survey wasn’t limited to gay establishments.

Angela Bradbery, spokesperson for the smoking ban advocacy group Smokefree D.C., questioned the findings of the restaurant association survey, saying the association declined to disclose the number of businesses participating in the survey.

“Anecdotal evidence — it’s too early for any other data to be gathered — shows bars and restaurants are doing just fine,” she said.

Bill Capello, owner of the D.C. Eagle, one of the city’s oldest and most well known leather and country western bars catering to gays, disagrees.

“We have had the worst beginning of the year than ever before,” he said. “Business in February was off 35 percent from the year before.” He said revenue has been down about 25 percent each month since the ban took effect.

“My accountant’s eyes jumped wide open when he saw the numbers,” Capello said. “I had to cut payroll and cut back on the hours of work for the staff.”

He said he will “absolutely” apply for a hardship waiver under a provision of the smoking ban law that allows businesses to apply for a temporary waiver if revenue declines by 15 percent or more for three consecutive months compared to the previous year.

Managers or owners of the other gay establishments responding to the survey who reported declines in business said their declines were not as severe as the Eagle’s.

Joey Oldaker, general manager of the Dupont Circle establishments Apex nightclub and Omega bar, both owned by gay businessman Glen Thompson, said the two clubs each suffered a decline in patrons and revenue but not enough to make the clubs eligible for a waiver.

“We raised prices slightly to make up for some of the lost revenue,” Oldaker said.

“Our biggest concern is the people who go outside to smoke. We’re nearly surrounded by condos and the noise created by the people outside smoking could create problems.”

In past years, some neighborhood activists have challenged the liquor license renewal for Omega and Apex, claiming patrons were creating excessive noise. But in an unusual development, the Advisory Neighborhood Commission representing the area where the two clubs are located, which often protests liquor licenses, supported the two clubs, saying they were responsible neighbors in an area where residents and nightlife businesses are in close proximity.