YORBA LINDA : City to Take Smoking Measure Off Ballot

The City Council voted 2 to 1 this week to remove a proposed amendment to the city’s smoking ordinance that was to have been on the November ballot as an advisory measure.

Councilman Henry W. Wedaa, who sponsored the amendment that would have banned smoking in all public places including restaurants and places of employment, was absent from the Tuesday night meeting, and his only consistent ally, Mark Schwing, abstained.

The council will now consider a scaled-back version of the amendment that would require restaurants to set aside 70% of their tables for a nonsmoking section. Currently, the ordinance requires restaurants to reserve 33% of their tables for nonsmokers.

Councilman John M. Gullixson, who made the motion to remove the advisory measure, said that while he initially supported the idea, he now thinks it was a mistake to have it on the ballot.

“Wedaa manufactured this cause, and while it may have enjoyed some public support, was it an issue that people were banging on doors about? No,” he said.

Gullixson said an advisory measure, estimated to cost about $10,000, would be a waste of money because both the state and the county are considering smoking bans that could preempt whatever the city approved.

“We don’t know what (the state and county) are going to do,” he said. “It may become a moot point. If not, we can come back in six months and do an advisory measure then.”

Gullixson was supported by Mayor Barbara Kiley. Councilman Daniel T. Welch voted against removing the measure.