A possible exemption from Madison's controversial smoking ban could help bring cigar bars back into business.

Brought forth to the City Council last week by Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, the ordinance would allow people to smoke cigars inside cigar bars designated by the city.

"I believe the Council was short-sighted in not following the lead in most similar smoking bans around the country," Verveer said. "I'm optimistic that we can finally correct this wrong."

A similar exemption was proposed in June 2005, but Verveer said the reason it did not pass was because of the proposal's language, which would have allowed cigarette smoking inside the cigar bars.

"My hope is that by keeping cigarette smoking banned, it will not raise the concern among other bar owners or that somehow I'm creating an un-level playing field," he said.

Verveer said the motivation to propose the exemption was due to the declining business of downtown cigar bar Maduro.

"I'm going to try to keep a struggling small business open downtown, a business that would be thriving — but for the Madison City Council," he said.

According to Maduro's owner Brian Haltinner, when the smoking ban was initially passed, sales dropped 15 to 20 percent.

And as even more time has passed, Haltinner added, sales are 40 percent below what the establishment had previously made.

"It stayed bearable [through the summer], but once the cold weather hit, we really fell," he said.

Haltinner said he is optimistic the exemption will pass because the proposal last summer lost by only two votes.

"A couple of the alders felt by granting us an exemption, they would be upsetting their constituents, and I understand that because [of] the wording [of the last proposal]," he said. "Now, we had it reworded so we would be allowing just cigars and pipes."

Based on a similar smoking ban in New York City, the language of the new proposal would allow people to smoke if 10 percent of the bar's revenue comes from tobacco sales, Haltinner said.

Verveer added cigar bars would have to reapply for city exemption every year and continually maintain the 10 percent of tobacco sales.

Currently, those who want to smoke cigars can only do so legally in cigar or tobacco shops, according to Verveer.

In addition to the cigar-bar exemption, Verveer said a second part of the ordinance proposes to allow smokeless tobacco in bars and clubs.

"I think it was ridiculous of the smoking ban, whose main purpose was to protect health by second-hand smoke, to prevent chew," he added. "My proposal would liberalize those that chew and allow them to do so openly, which I think is only common sense."

Downtown Madison Inc. President Susan Schmitz said her organization supports the proposal, as many downtown businesses have not opposed it.

"I think it's a good thing that [Verveer] is bringing it up again," she said. "These are one of the things that you have to be sensitive to with an overall ban like that."

Both Verveer and Haltinner emphasized the exemption would not include permission of cigarette smoking in cigar bars.

"We're not trying to be the oasis in Madison where everyone can come and smoke," Haltinner said. "We're just getting our cigar business back."