BY DAVE KURTZ, Evening Star
AUBURN — Common Council members defeated an ordinance to regulate smoking by a 5-2 final vote Tuesday night, after passing it 4-3 on their first vote two weeks ago.
Councilmen Rich Crawford and Greg Kenner changed their votes from “yes” on Sept. 6 to “no” Tuesday, citing different reasons.
Only council members Mike Walter and Marilyn Gearhart voted for the ordinance Tuesday. Rick Ring, Jim Finchum and Dr. David Painter repeated their “no” votes of Sept. 6.
Had it passed, the ordinance would have banned smoking in restaurants unless they built completely enclosed areas for smokers. It also would have outlawed smoking in retail stores, government buildings and most indoor places that are open to the public.
Crawford hesitated before voting against an ordinance he piloted through contentious hearings that began in March.
“It’s no longer accomplishing what I wanted to accomplish. I’m voting no,” Crawford said.
Representatives of Drug Free DeKalb County and the American Cancer Society said they no longer supported the ordinance, after an amendment allowed enclosed areas where diners could smoke.
“Smoking rooms do not protect the health of workers or patrons,” said Brenda Daley, director of Drug Free DeKalb County, who had led the campaign for smoking regulations.
Kenner said he made up his mind only about five minutes before voting. He said he was swayed by comments from Danny McAfee, a former councilman and current member of the Auburn Board of Public Works and Safety.
“Where are the Republicans here on this city council?” McAfee asked just before the final vote. He asked if the council would buy Nazi armbands for officers enforcing the smoking ordinance.
“If he’s going to call me a Democrat, I’m going to have to vote against this,” Kenner said, adding that he greatly respects McAfee.
Four “no” votes already had doomed the ordinance before the roll call reached Kenner.
“I would really appreciate it if the businesses would work hard at voluntarily putting systems in that will help people like me who have asthma,” Kenner said a few minutes later.
Gary Hershberger, owner of the Town Tavern, told Kenner he already has done so.
Hershberger joined numerous business owners and citizens who spoke against the smoking ordinance in nearly two hours of debate.
A standing-room-only crowd of more than 50 citizens attended the meeting. Although some speakers supported the ordinance, opponents outnumbered them roughly 3-to-1.
Shelley Smaltz opened more than an hour of public comments. A member of the Auburn Chamber of Commerce executive board, she said the board unanimously opposed the ordinance.
“The people of this community will quit smoking through education, not legislation,” Smaltz said. “I am asking you to say ‘no’ to taking rights away from our law-abiding, taxpaying business owners.”
“Smoking is bad... But I’m against this ordinance,” said Dr. William Hathaway, an Auburn physician. “Government should not micromanage people’s lives. ...People have a choice of restaurants or other places they enter.”
Forcing restaurants to comply with the smoking rules would cost them money for remodeling and lost business, opponents said.
“This county is losing jobs every single day,” Patty Anderson said. “I can’t conceive that anybody could put an ordinance through that could create more loss of jobs.”
Anderson said she watched restaurants and taverns close and people lose jobs when New York City passed smoking regulations.
“I just disagree that business will accommodate and survive,” said Dimitrios Samalekis, owner of the Ambrosia Restaurant. “I lost a lot of money in New York to that.”
Mike Watson, president of the Chamber of Commerce, presented petitions and letters opposing the ordinance. He said 942 people work in Auburn’s restaurants.
Watson asked council members what they would say to restaurant employees if they lost their jobs.
Hershberger said he could not see how to seal off a smoking area in his 80-year-old Town Tavern to comply with the ordinance.
“Leave my bar room alone. You will kill my bar,” Hershberger said. “People who drink, smoke.”
Auburn Police Chief Martin McCoy told the council his officers would not have time to enforce the ordinance.
“I cannot do it. I’ll tell you that it will be my lowest priority,” McCoy said. Council members then voted 6-1 to leave the Auburn Fire Department as the primary enforcement agency had the ordinance passed.
While only four people spoke in favor of the ordinance. Councilman Mike Walter said many more supported it,
“I’ve had too many people over too many years asking me why we don’t have a smoking ban in Auburn,” Walter said. “I think the community is ready to accept this,” he added later.
“I expect opposition from business,” Walter said. “A lot of things have happened in this country that are pretty good, over the objection of business. And lo and behold, business has learned to accommodate.”
Roselyn Wells said diners have rights as well as restaurant owners.
“There’s a lot of non-smokers like me. We just quietly go somewhere else,” Wells said.
“Hopefully the restaurant owners all learned something by this,” Mayor Norm Yoder said of the months-long debate over smoking rules. “I think this can be a win-win” for the community, he said.
The outcome spared Yoder the decision of whether to veto it, had it passed.
“I’m really torn,” Yoder said at the start of Tuesday’s meeting. “Whatever the decision is, we’re still going to be one community, and hopefully everybody will accept that.”