Tuesday’s Common Council meeting was expected to reopen the fierce debate about a possible smoking ban in Madison-area bars, an idea that has recently been widely rejected and was not anticipated to be re-voted on for several months.

Instead, Ald. Brenda Konkel, who had originally made the proposal to reopen the debate, retracted the item from the agenda and postponed debate over the issue indefinitely.

For years, tavern/bar owners and anti-tobacco lobbyists have clashed over the terms of a smoking-ban ordinance, and the recent compromise has left both sides at a standstill for the time being.

Ald. Mike Verveer said that amid all the different opinions about the smoking ban, very few have the energy to reopen the issue so soon.

“One of the reasons [Konkel] changed her mind was that the support wasn’t there to open this can of worms again,” Verveer said. “Both sides were saying, ‘Don’t reconsider it; we would rather just take this compromise for now.’ Of course each side would prefer a different outcome, but at this point they’re all satisfied with the compromise.”

In a speech made immediately after the meeting, Konkel said she changed her mind about reopening the smoking ban debate largely because there was very little interest and few had the energy to discuss the issue. But Konkel and Verveer remained certain that the issue would arise in the near future.

“We all know there are problems with the compromise and that there will be problems with its implementation, and that will have to be addressed at some point,” Verveer said.

Officially, reconsiderations and attempts to void ordinances and resolutions must take place in the Common Council meeting immediately following that in which they were passed. This is why Konkel moved to reconsider the smoking-ban ordinance. But Mike Verveer says the rule is simply a formality.

“In essence, we could really take the issue up again at any time,” Verveer said. “One of the ideas of Brenda’s was to have a referendum placed on the spring election ballot that would ban smoking in all bars and restaurants in the city, but there’s still time for the council to put the referendum on the ballot.”

It is still unclear as to the reaction the referendum will receive by either the Common Council or the members of the community, because there are so many staunch supporters of both sides. Late last month, the Common Council passed a resolution banning smoking in restaurants, along with other provisions for taverns and bars. The resolution will not fully take effect until 2006.