Lakewood Officials Following Ohio Senate Bill That Would Allow Guns into Bars and Restaurants

Lakewood officials are considering the possible impact of a Senate Bill that would allow people to carry concealed firearms into bars and restaurants.

Senate Bill 17 passed the Ohio Senate on Wednesday, 25-7, and will now head to the Ohio House for discussion. The measure includes a number of specifications — including one that notes people carrying the weapons could not drink alcohol in the establishments.

With more than 100 bars and restaurants in Lakewood, the measure makes some local officials a little uneasy.

“Guns and alcohol don’t mix,” said Chief Timothy Malley. “It could provide some concern.”

, who represents Lakewood as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, took her concerns a step further.

“I think this is ridiculous and dangerous,” she said. “Is this really the wild, wild west?”

State Senator Michael J. Skindell, D-23, representing Lakewood, was one of the seven senators who voted against the measure.

The Ohio House is on its annual spring break but the bill is expected to go before the House during the first week of May.

If SB 17 makes it to her chamber, Antonio said she would vote against it.

“Instead of having a designated driver, you would have a designated gun-toting friend with you?” she said. “I don’t understand this.”

“I understand why gun manufacturers and lobbyists want everyone to have a gun,” Antonio added. “It comes down to how many folks are supported by the NRA and the gun lobbyists. Because that’s what it’s all about.”

The law on the books prevents people with concealed carry permits from taking firearms into places such as retail stores, hotels, restaurants and nightclubs.

SB 17 would change that.

House Speaker William G. Batchelder told The Columbus Dispatch that he thinks the bill is “not a bad idea," but said it does not appear to have the votes for passage in the House.

"The last time I saw the head count, it was missing a little something by way of numbers, but not a lot,” he told the newspaper. “I'd prefer not to bring something to the floor if it's going to be defeated."

Only three months in Columbus, Antonio said she’d hoped to be voting on issues that created jobs.

“I’ve stopped trying to make sense of some of the bills before us,” she said. “There is no problem this is solving. I think it will cause problems. I think people are going to lose their lives because of this bill.”

The Ohio Restaurant Association is expected to throw its support toward opposing the bill.

But if it passed, restaurant owners would still be permitted to post signs in the window telling patrons not to bring in guns.

Julie Hutchison, co-owner of the in Lakewood, called the bill “disgusting.” She said she wouldn’t allow people to carry concealed weapons into her Detroit Avenue establishment.

“I am against carrying firearms,” she said. “I wouldn’t want anyone to carry a gun into my restaurant. That’s not cool."