SCHENECTADY City’s smoking ban to widen No lighting up at park pavilions, fields, playgrounds BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter
Smoking and children will no longer mix in the city’s parks. The City Council plans to ban smoking at all city playgrounds, pavilions and ballfields. All tobacco products will be banned, including chewing tobacco. Previously, smoking was only banned at Tiny Tot Land in Central Park and the city pools. Smoking still will be allowed elsewhere in each park, so smokers who are willing to walk a short distance away from the children can still light up. The City Council approved the ban in committee Monday. The ban will not go into effect until the council holds a formal vote. Councilman Mark Blanchfield said smokers could easily choose not to smoke for a couple of hours while at the playground. “My gut feeling is the parks are a little different from a workplace,” he said. “At the parks, most people aren’t stuck there for more than a couple hours.” Commissioner of General Services Carl Olsen added that the ban doesn’t apply to every space in the parks. “They are outdoors,” he said. “The parks have other areas where people can go to smoke.” Olsen, who smokes, recom- mended that the council approve the ban. Council members also signaled that they are far more serious about the ban now. They discussed creating a $50 fine for those who smoke in the playgrounds and enforcing an existing $50 fine for those who throw their cigarette butts on the ground. They will hold a public hearing on the fine at 7 p.m. on May 10 at City Hall. ...............>>>>.................>>>>...............http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r01104&AppName=1
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No tobacco chewing on the baseball diamond? Good luck with enforcing that one.
