Although DeKalb’s proposed smoking ban hangs over local businesses like a storm cloud, neighboring town Sycamore remained unaffected up until Feb. 20, Sycamore City Manager Bill Nicklas said.

“When the council took this up some months ago, they determined it was more prudent not to take any action,” Nicklas said. “That was partly in response to the survey done by the Chamber of Commerce through its members from downtown businesses and restaurants. The result of the survey recommended no change.

A Change of Course

During Monday’s Sycamore City Council meeting, 1st Ward Alderman Alan Bauer encouraged the council to reconsider its decision not to regulate smoking.

“DeKalb has protected the rights of a lot of people,” Bauer said. “The rights for the business owners is not absolute and should not be in place when the rights of others are sacrificed.”

Barbara Leach, 3rd ward council member, supported reconsidering a Sycamore smoking ban.

“When we discussed this before, I was one of those people with DeKalb,” Leach said. “I didn’t want us to be an island economically. I would be willing to relook at the issue.”

At the Feb. 6 Sycamore City Council meeting, Steve Kapitan, DeKalb’s 3rd ward alderman, mentioned his city is likely to pass a smoking ban and encouraged Sycamore’s council to do the same.

“In terms of practical application, if we prohibit smoking in bars in DeKalb, one may choose to drive to a bar in Sycamore,” he said.

There has been friction between the towns in the past to gain sales tax dollars, Kapitan said. This conflict has occurred over getting businesses to move from one city to the other.

Area Businesses Respond

Srdan Selimbegovic, owner of MVP Sports Club, 124 S. California St., adamantly supports the no-change policy Nicklas mentioned.

“It would affect everybody’s bar business,” Selimbegovic said, adding that 70 to 75 percent of his clients are smokers. “I don’t think it would be [appropriate] for them to tell us how to run our business.”

In September 2005, he and other Sycamore bar owners took their protests to a Sycamore City Council meeting.

Courtney Hiland, manager of Carls Fargo Restaurant, 355 West State St., differed from Selimbegovic’s views.

“I don’t think it would affect our business at all,” Hiland said. “The bulk of our business is banquets, so I don’t think it would be an issue.”

In other news, Nicklas presented the council with fiscal highlights for a proposed three-year capital budget plan. The $20 million program’s top expenditures include $3 million for construction of a second water tower in 2007, a $2.5 million construction of another fire station for 2008 and Phases I and II of improvements to the city’s water treatment plant, adding up to $12.203 million.