Gresham City Council Approves Smoking Ban For City Parks And Trails

GRESHAM, OR — The city council on May 16 officially approved a prohibition on using tobacco and other smoking products in city parks, trails and open spaces. Set to take effect 30 days after its approval, residents and park visitors will have a six month grace period before Gresham police will issue citations to violators.

Anyone caught violating the tobacco and smoking ban will face a $500 fine, according to city officials. Products that fall under the prohibition include, but are not limited to, cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, clover cigarettes, e-cigarettes, nicotine vaporizers, nicotine liquids, hookahs, bidis and kreteks, pipes, chew, snuff, and smokeless tobacco.

Designed to improve community livability and cleanliness on park trails and within the city's open spaces (totaling roughly 1,140 acres), the new ordinance adds Gresham to a list of 1,200 other cities across the nation — including 60 Oregon cities — that have imposed similar bans. Nationally, those cities include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Dallas. And of Oregon's top 10 most populous cities, Gresham is the only that had yet to enact a no smoking or tobacco ordinance.

"Anyone who's visited our parks knows cigarette litter is a problem," Finance Manager Bernard Seeger told the council on April 18, the day the ordinance was first read. "And unfortunately, not only does it affect users of the park but it does affect animals; you find cases where animals consumed cigarette butts and litter, and that leads to their harm and detriment as well."

Cigarette butts near play areas also cause problems for youth and parents, Seeger said, adding that the ban will also help reduce fire hazards in Gresham's unirrigated, dry parks.

Three neighborhood associations were asked for feedback and some self-selective polling was conducted to help inform the need for the ban, Seeger said. Also, public testimony to the council was in support of the prohibition.

The only exceptions to the ban is for Native American cultural activities, Seeger said, and areas where the ban cannot be enforced, such as bike paths shared with vehicular traffic or while sitting in a car inside a city park.

The council approved the ordinance unanimously. It will fully take effect on Nov. 15.

Image: PublicDomainPictures via Pixabay.com