A proposed bill in Montgomery County, Maryland, would require hookah lounges, vape and tobacco shops to close at hours that align with closing times of the county’s bars and restaurants.
Montgomery County Council Vice President Kate Stewart is one of the lead sponsors of the bill and told WTOP that downtown Silver Spring has seen a spike in crimes between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. — after bars are closed, but while hookah lounges are still open.
“What we are seeing is an increase in calls for service” from police during those hours, said Stewart.
Council member Gabe Albornoz, one of the three lead sponsors on the bill, says he has heard from constituents who tell him, “It’s unnerving to hear gunshots on a fairly consistent basis now.”
Stewart said the proposed bill that would require vape shops, tobacco shops and hookah lounges to close at 2 a.m. Monday through Thursday, and 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, is not aimed at putting a damper on downtown nightlife. The businesses that operate bars, restaurants and entertainment venues are “wonderful,” but she said, “most of them close at 2 and 3 a.m.”
Stewart and Albornoz said that the problems are not a result of the type of businesses involved, but Albornoz explains, “Oftentimes people that arrive [at the lounges after the bars have closed], are intoxicated,” and that fuels the after-hours problems the community and police are seeing.
Stewart said other jurisdictions have regulated the hours that hookah lounges, vape shops and tobacco shops can operate.
In Prince George’s County, they must close by 8 p.m. every night. In D.C., they close at the same time as bars and restaurants. In Baltimore County, they must close up by midnight.
Information from Montgomery County Police provided in the legislative packet presented to the council shows that between January of 2022 and Jan. 31 of this year, there were 2,974 calls for service in downtown Silver Spring between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. — after bars close and when hookah and tobacco lounges and shops are open.
Stewart said there’s another issue that caused by the all-night operations of the businesses the county would like to close earlier: police overtime.
According to the language in the county’s legislative packet, “the increased police presence during overnight hours has led to significant overtime cost for the Department, reaching tens of thousands of dollars per month with a high point of $70,000 in overtime expenses.”
A public hearing on the bill is scheduled for Tuesday, March 5, at 1:30 p.m.
WTOP has reached out to several hookah lounge businesses for response but did not hear back by the time this report was filed.
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