The mood was tense as the item everyone was waiting for was about to come up at Monday’s DeKalb City Council meeting.

Mayor Frank Van Buer opened the smoking ban consideration by expressing his strong support for the ban.

“It’s time that we as a community stand up in front and stop following,” Van Buer said. “Follow-up studies generally find establishments not allowing smoking do not lose money.”

The smoking ban has been brewing for some time, as the DeKalb Citizens Environmental Commission approached 2nd Ward Alderman Kris Povlsen to request a smoking ban a couple years ago.

The ordinance as drafted would ban smoking cigarettes within public places and 10 feet from any doorway, which could pose a problem at certain locations like the downtown area.

Local business owners implored the council to not include bars in the ban.

“We are projecting a 20 to 40 percent downturn in business if this is passed, we may have to close in the afternoon,” said Robert Goehring, general manager of Andy’s Lounge, 317 E. Lincoln Highway. “We have installed filtering systems that bring in outside air, we can turnover the air in the whole place in 20 minutes.”

“Believe me, customers will go right down the road to Sycamore,” said Ed Tadevich, owner of Mardi Gras Lanes, 1730 Sycamore Road.

Smoking in private clubs and designated hotel and motel rooms would not be affected.

NIU Colleges Against Cancer president Matt DeLance spoke in favor of the smoking ban hoping to avoid the outbreak of preventable cancers in the future.

Many people wanted to share their opinions, as a result, statements were strictly held to the three-minute limit by City Attorney Norma Guess. She gave angst-ridden speakers a 30-second warning before announcing the speaker’s time was up.

Discussion approached two hours despite DeKalb’s measures to get speakers to their points quickly.

Opponents of the smoking ban said consumers yearning to go to the bar and smoke will go to neighboring towns where smoking is permitted indoors.

“How many people are going to drive farther to risk a DUI just so they can smoke,” said Mark Peysakhovich, senior director of advocacy for the American Heart Association.

The smoking ban ordinance will come to the council for first reading Feb. 13.