Brady Fisher said change is always good, and the smoking-ban bill may be beneficial to everyone in the end.

“I expect it to work out,” Fisher, co-owner of the Towne Tavern, Lewisburg, said Wednesday. “In time, it will be a normal procedure.”

The Towne Tavern offers a mixed seating area for both smokers and non-smokers. The ban ultimately will have an effect on the establishment.

“Customers knew it was definitely coming,” he said. “Some think it’s good in a lot of ways, and others will be concerned their rights will be taken away.”

One of those customers is Chris Rohland, of Lewisburg. Rohland is a smoker. “Honestly,” he said, in a slightly sarcastic tone, “I feel there goes another little bit of our liberty and freedom. But I guess the government knows best, and they’re looking out for our best interest.”

Chuck and Janice Bolton, of Lewisburg, both think the ban is a good idea.

“The law will protect people that need to be protected,” he said. “People that smoke shouldn’t have to impose their habit upon other people. It’s also possible that the law will push me over the hump, and I’ll stop smoking.”

Janice Bolton, an ex-smoker, agreed with her husband that it’s a good law. “Now, I won’t have to breathe the second-hand smoke,” she said.

At the Bull Run Inn, across Market Street from the Towne Tavern, Anthony Huffman, a smoker, expressed strong feelings about the law.

“I understand the concept behind the law, but for the most part, I am against it. It’s going to affect a lot of businesses. I know that when I go out and I drink, I like to have a cigarette, and if you have to go outside, it’s going to affect how I feel about going out in the first place. You will have to take time out from enjoying yourself to just go out and smoke.

“I believe it will mostly affect the bar crowd,” Huffman continued. “You’re taking people who are inside, drinking and having a good time and putting them out in the street, perhaps in harm’s way if there is traffic outside. As far as restaurants and hospitals are concerned, I do agree with a smoking ban. Overall, I think this is an infringement on our rights.”

The state Senate approved a statewide smoking ban Tuesday that would make Pennsylvania the 33rd state to prohibit smoking in many workplaces and public areas. The bill was sent to Gov. Ed Rendell, who has said he plans to sign the bill.

After it is signed into law, the law will take effect in 90 days, banning cigarette, cigar and pipe smoking in restaurants, office buildings, schools, sports arenas, theaters and bus and train stations.

Opponents of the bill have said the government is playing against small business owners, potentially hurting neighborhood taverns and eateries where people stay for hours smoking.

Fisher said he thinks the ban initially will cause a decrease in the number of customers, but that eventually will subside.