After more than three years of butting heads, aldermen could finally vote Wednesday to ban smoking in restaurants, bars or both.
Activists on both sides are tired of waiting and say decision time is now.
“It’s Chicago politics at its finest,” said Dan Rosenthal, owner of Trattoria No. 10 and spokesman for Chefs and Owners United for Good Health–a group of 120 restaurants that support a comprehensive smoking ban. “It’s clout over caring. Personal benefit over personal health. It’s absolute insanity. Every major city in the country should be laughing at the process we’re going through.”
The smoking ban debate “makes me want to puke,” Rosenthal said.
Opponents of a comprehensive ban also say it’s time to act.
“We’d like to see a compromise,” said Andrew Ariens of the Illinois Restaurant Association. “That’s what we’ve been asking for for a long time.”
A smoking ban proposed by Ald. Ed Smith (28th) has been called for a vote at Wednesday’s meeting, said Health Committee coordinator Leo McCord. The ordinance calls for a comprehensive ban in all public places, including restaurants and bars.
The opposition, led by the Illinois Restaurant Association and Ald. Burton Natarus (42nd), has argued that a smoking ban would hurt Chicago businesses. Natarus’ proposal would prohibit smoking in virtually all public places except taverns and restaurant bars that are walled off from dining areas. Natarus’ proposal brought three hours of discussion and debate Monday before the Finance Committee, which recessed before taking a vote. Natarus plans to call for a vote on his proposal when the Finance Committee reconvenes Tuesday.
“If it carries, we will have two ordinances on the floor” when the council meets on Wednesday, he said.
“I think it is a very close vote either way,” he said. Natarus tweaked his proposal on Monday, adding a provision that would require the city to set clean air standards for taverns and lounges where there is smoking despite assertions by anti-tobacco groups that no exhaust system could scrub the air of carcinogens.
Smith bent slightly on Monday at the behest of some of his colleagues, agreeing to amend his proposal to exempt venues occupied by fraternal and religious clubs and veterans’ organizations such as the American Legion from a smoking ban.
Smith is optimistic that the council will pass his comprehensive ordinance on Wednesday, McCord said.
“I don’t see any possibility of a delay at this time,” he said.
While the smoking war has waged, Chicagoans have been watching and wondering if this issue will ever be resolved and how it will affect them.
“I would love to come out to every discussion, and my friends would like to come, but it’s difficult to spend three or four hours at city hall just to have nothing happen,” said Austine Clark. The 21-year-old Loyola University student attended last week’s council meeting with hopes that a decision regarding a smoke-free Chicago would be made, but the aldermen postponed their vote until Wednesday.
“It’s taking a long time,” said Joseph Sullivan, 40, of the South Loop. “There’s been a lot of back and forth. Daley has not provided clear leadership.”
Mayor Daley “really doesn’t have a position” on the issue, said his spokesman Lance Lewis. “He’s really leaving it up for the aldermen to decide. He hasn’t favored
one side against the other.”
Some activists say that Daley has a responsibility to use his political clout to resolve this debate.
“I’m disappointed that the mayor is not willing to take a stand for clean air in the city’s restaurants and bars,” said Karan Shah, 21, a Loyola student who attended last week’s council meeting. “People are tired of [the ordinance] getting blocked, getting postponed. I expected a final vote back in October. It’s been almost two months. What’s going on? Why are we dragging this out?”
One reason a decision on the ban has taken so long is that Ald. Smith’s ordinance is too stringent, said Ariens of the restaurant association.
“There doesn’t seem to be that much support for an all-out ban, and that’s probably why it’s taken so long,” he said.
Steve Derks of the American Cancer Society, which has funded many of the anti-smoking ad campaigns in the city, said the issue is complex and personal for many involved and that no one ever expected that reaching a decision would be easy.
“We asked Mayor Daley to be with us on this issue from the very beginning. He chose another route,” he said. “We respect that. We are delighted that he has pledged to everyone publicly that he is not going to intervene.
“We’ve taken him on his word at that, and we are working with the aldermen day in and day out.”
Some aldermen complained of the lobbying tactics employed by the anti-smoking forces.
“You should hear what they say to me on the phone,” Natarus said. “They call and say, ‘We are going to huff and puff and blow your house down.’ “
Supporters of the Smith measure had charges of their own, contending that “Big Tobacco,” checkbook in hand, is backing the Natarus version.
Regardless of the charges being slung, many Chicagoans would like to see the city hurry up and make a decision.
“Anything longer than one year seems like too long,” said Caroline Louis, 24, of Edgewater. Louis is originally from smoke-free West Palm Beach, Fla., and said she doesn’t understand what the fuss is all about.
“It was a very easy transition” in her hometown, she said. “It shouldn’t be a big deal. Everyone can handle it.”
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mcarberry@tribune.com
