A soon-to-open downtown Roanoke bar and restaurant has extinguished plans to sell bursts of oxygen, which the owner claimed could boost patrons' energy and relieve tension.

Roanoke County resident Randy Sturgill has been crafting plans for a bar and restaurant on Market Street, a space that formerly housed Quizno's Subs and the Healthy Treats Bakery & Cafe.

But this new establishment wasn't only going to serve alcohol and food. Sturgill intended for it to have stations where customers could inhale 90 percent pure oxygen bursts through nose tubes, for a fee. His former business partner, Scott Mitchell, no longer is involved with the business.

Because of safety concerns associated with selling oxygen, Sturgill said he has bagged plans to have three oxygen stations at the restaurant. He said health officials were worried about safety risks, such as patrons having allergic reactions to the oxygen.

"They didn't know how to regulate it," Sturgill said.

Plus, the concept of including oxygen stations was becoming "a little more of a headache than I thought it was going to be," Sturgill said.

Oxygen bars have been growing in popularity since the 1990s. They're considered a trendy addition to health clubs, restaurants and bars, and many have opened on the West Coast.

Still, the medical community largely does not support oxygen bars' claimed benefits. Proponents say oxygen rejuvenates, energizes and relieves tension. There is no medical evidence to validate the benefits of inhaling oxygen at a bar, according to some health experts.

Sturgill, a former field technician for Cox Communications, still plans to open a bar and restaurant at the site, naming it The Market Street Pub. It will serve lunch and dinner and have live music.

And though he hasn't yet applied for an ABC license, he's aiming to open the establishment in the next two weeks.