Deb Teeter loves coming to the Bella Lounge, 925 Iowa, because it is not too loud, you can have a nice conversation with someone and it is smoke-free.

“I would definitely not come here if it wasn’t,” the Lawrence resident said.

Glenn Halderman, left, and Kelly Church, right, smoke cigarettes at the Clay Cafe, 1910 Haskell Ave. Mark Humziker is at center. Church owns the cafe. City commissioners are considering a ban of smoking in public places.

Teeter may have other smoke-free places to hang ou t soon. In April, the Lawrrence City Commission has discussed the possibility of a smoking ban in public places in the city.

When the Bella Lounge opened last May, it was Lawrence’s only smoke-free bar. Almost a year later, owner Rob Farha is unsure the Bella Lounge will remain a smoke-free establishment. That depends on sales totals at the end of the year, but so far sales are falling short of expectations.

Making the decision to open the Bella Lounge as a smoke-free establishment was not easy. After many years as owner of The Wheel Cafe, 507 W. 14th St., Farha knew smoking and drinking go hand-in-hand. But trying something new was worth it to Farha.

“As a small-business owner, you are a risk-taker. I’m willing to take that risk to stay on the cutting edge,” Farha said.

Melissa Smith, facilitator for the Douglas County Health Improvement Project’s Special Committee on Tobacco, said Bella Lounge was setting an example.

“It says that the owner cares about employee health as well as that of his customers,” Smith said.

Smith said she believed the benefits of being a smoke-free establishment will pay off because of fewer sick days for employees, lower maintenance costs and avoiding lawsuits over employee health problems related to secondhand smoke. Smith also believes smoke-free bars will not suffer financially because they appeal to people who seek out smoke-free places.

Although many Bella Lounge patrons keep returning because it is smoke-free, the support for the bar has not been overwhelming, Farha said. But even if he decided to allow smoking, he said he still believed the Bella Lounge provided something unique to Lawrence.

“Everything is sports bars in Lawrence. I wanted to give college kids and other clientele something different,” Farha said.

What the Bella Lounge offers is plush lounging chairs, carpeted floors, soft lighting and jazzy background music. That is what Farha hopes will keep patrons coming back, with or without their cigarettes.