The 5,000 people who signed petitions seeking a referendum on the city’s new no-smoking ordinance have reason to question the organizers’ decision to set those petitions aside.

Rather than file the petitions to force a public vote on the matter, organizers of the drive to oppose the smoking ban decided to try to seek a more amicable solution with the Lawrence City Commission. The only problem is that commissioners aren’t in the mood to negotiate. Even faced with 5,000 signatures, four of the five city commissioners said they had no interest in reconsidering their decision on the ban.

Opponents of the ban may have feared they would lose a referendum vote, but even a losing vote might have provided additional fuel for their effort if enough people voted against the ban. As it stands, there is almost no chance a compromise plan will be considered– at least under this city commission.

It would have been nice for the public to weigh in on this contentious issue. A referendum vote during the March primary election also might have avoided the smoking ban being a key election issue for City Commission candidates in the April general election. It seems local Lawrence elections too often get sidetracked by hot-button issues like the smoking ban.

At any rate, with the filing deadline supposedly past, the smoking ban petitions apparently are headed for the trash can. Organizers of the petition drive say it was a difficult decision; many of the petition’s signers probably would say it was the wrong decision.