The Dallas City Council voted on Jan. 22 to ban smoking in all of the city’s restaurants and in many other public places.

While the 10-3 vote was a smart move for the health of diners all over the city, it will be a bad move for the health of the local economy.

Despite the wise words of the surgeon general, millions of Americans are still avid smokers as a weekend trip to any local bar will prove.

And no matter how loud Mayor Laura Miller protests that there is no scientific evidence to prove smoking bans in states such as California, Vermont, Maine and Utah and cities such as New York City and Boston have lost money for the businesses affected, the ordinance is bad news for Dallas restaurant owners.

Complete smoking bans can work in places like California and Maine because the law is statewide. In Dallas, we have suburbs to contend with. Smokers no longer able to light up in their favorite restaurant need only take a five-minute trip down the highway to find a whole suburb full of businesses willing to accommodate their habits.

With trendy cities such as Addison just a quick jaunt up the highway, Dallas restaurants will be threatened by the ordinance in ways that the other bans never had to deal with. For a smoking ban to really work, it must be passed into statewide law.

And judging by the recent efforts of the city council to convince us all to “Buy Dallas,” the city’s economy needs every inch it can take from the suburbs.

It does not make sense to push a total ban on smoking when there are other options available, such as required separate ventilation systems for smokers and non-smokers.

The city’s health aside, the question “smoking or non?” is really a question of how much Dallas wants to cede to its neighbors.