Solana Beach Council Rejects Smoking Compromise

A ban on smoking in public places in Solana Beach remains on track after the City Council rejected a compromise amendment.

Councilman Paul Tompkins, who voted for the total ban earlier this month, asked the council to instead amend the ordinance to require restaurants to set aside 80% of their establishment for nonsmokers.

Only Councilwoman Marion Dodson, who has consistently opposed the ban, voted with Tompkins on Wednesday night. The ordinance is scheduled to be formally adopted Aug. 3.

Tompkins, who now opposes the 100% ban, said it is “more of a choice issue than a health issue.”

Restaurants should be allowed to voluntarily ban smoking, he said, and those that do should be recognized by the city.

“Please hold on to what you’ve done, don’t back down,” urged Sue Rodenberger of the San Dieguito Alliance for Drug-Free Youth.

Belly Up tavern owner Dave Hodges, armed with a letter signed by 29 local restaurant owners, said Tompkins’ proposal was a “fair compromise.”

But Councilman Richard Hendlin said that second-hand smoke is “exclusively a health issue” and that the council should not water down the ordinance.

He was joined by Mayor Celine Olson and Councilwoman Margaret Schlesinger in rejecting the proposal.

As accepted by the council early in July, the ordinance would ban smoking in offices and restaurants, as well as prohibit cigarette vending machines in areas accessible to minors. Bars were exempt from the ordinance.

The council agreed to delay implementing the ordinance until September to give businesses time to adjust without losing business during the busy summer and to give surrounding cities time to propose similar ordinances.

Restaurant owners complained that their smoking customers would simply go to restaurants in neighboring cities where they could smoke.

Councilwoman Dodson had consistently opposed the ban, favoring a voluntary program. However, Tompkins, the former president of the Solana Beach Chamber of Commerce, has wavered. He initially supported the total ban but changed his mind, advocating an increase in nonsmoking areas.

However, earlier this month Tompkins voted in favor of a slightly less restrictive version of the ordinance that allowed smoking in the bars of restaurants, as long as the bar was completely separated from the restaurant or had proper ventilation. Dodson was the lone dissenting vote.

Last week, though, Tompkins reversed himself, saying the ordinance was too restrictive and could harm businesses. Second-hand smoke is not hazardous over short periods, he said.

But Hendlin argued that it would be impossible to enforce a ban based on a percentage of seating. It also would be hypocritical to ban smoking in work areas and not take into consideration people who work in restaurants, he said.

“Councilman Tompkins had no problem whatsoever with the ordinance dealing with the workplace, but he wants to make an exception when the workplace is a restaurant,” Hendlin said.