Smoke-Free Group Asks Oakland A’s to Help Ban Smoking in Nevada Casinos

Posted on: July 19, 2021, 03:04h. 

Last updated on: July 19, 2021, 04:08h.

Larry Henry Read More
Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Gaming Business, Legislation, Politics, Regulation.

A group advocating for smoke-free workplaces is reaching out to Major League Baseball for help in snuffing out smoking in Nevada casinos.

Park MGM
A sign at Park MGM on the Las Vegas Strip declares that smoking is prohibited in the resort. Park MGM was the first contemporary hotel-casino on the Strip to ban smoking. (Image: Los Angeles Times)

The Berkeley, Calif.-based Americans for Nonsmokers Rights has contacted MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and the Oakland Athletics. Their goal is to extinguish smoking in Nevada’s gambling halls, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Berkeley is in Northern California, near Oakland. 

The Athletics, also known as the A’s, are contemplating a move from the Bay Area to Las Vegas. The team bans smoking at its home stadium, the RingCentral Coliseum in Oakland.

The A’s Triple-A team, the Las Vegas Aviators, play at Las Vegas Ballpark west of the city, near the Red Rock Resort Casino and Spa. The ballpark bans smoking of any kind, including e-cigarettes and vaporizers.

Americans for Nonsmokers Rights CEO Cynthia Hallett stated in a recent letter to the commissioner that smoking is allowed in casinos in only two cities with big league teams, Kansas City and St. Louis.

“As you continue your consideration of Las Vegas or other cities as new home cities for the Athletics or other MLB teams, we hope you will contribute to creating safe environments in communities that host MLB franchises,” Hallett wrote.

It was not immediately known whether the A’s or the baseball commissioner had responded to the smoke-free advocates.

‘Smart Move’

The topic of smoking in casinos often draws strong opinions from people on both sides of the issue.

In the comment section of a recent Casino.org story about smoking in Louisiana riverboat casinos, a reader identified as Connie Townsend wrote that smoking should not be banned anywhere.

The Shreveport City County recently shelved a plan to allow smoking in the city’s two riverboat casinos. The smoking ban takes effect Aug. 1.

The casinos are private property, and the choice is up to the owners,” Townsend wrote. “This should be the case everywhere. Time for people to take back their private property rights.”

In the same comment section, a reader identified as Lady Zee Vee said smoking should be banned in all public places.

“If you want to ruin your lungs, do it in the privacy of your own car or house,” Lady Zee Vee wrote. 

Another reader, Randall Hill, wrote that a compromise might work.

“The smart move is to allow the casinos to have both smoking and nonsmoking areas to allow everyone to gamble and work in the area they prefer,” Hill wrote.

Las Vegas Casinos Limit Smoking

In Las Vegas, Park MGM banned smoking throughout the resort last year. The resort is on the west side of the Strip near T-Mobile arena. NoMad Las Vegas, a luxury “hotel-within-a-hotel” at Park MGM, also has banned smoking.

The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas and newly opened Resorts World Las Vegas prohibit smoking in public areas, but not the casino floor. These two resorts also are on the west side of the Strip.