(Poll) City Proposes Park Smoking Ban

The City Council recently pushed forward a proposal to ban smoking in city parks and recreation areas, excepting the Par 3 Golf Course.

Last month, the Council voted 4-1 in favor of creating an ordinance that would forbid people from lighting up in said locales; Mayor Pro Tem Bob Harbicht cast the lone dissenting vote.

The proposed ordinance will likely come before the Council for a vote in May.

The Pasadena Star-News reported Arcadia received an F grade from the American Lung Association in a 2012 report measuring performance on four tobacco control areas.

Council member Mickey Segal said the city should do better in regulating and controlling tobacco usage in order to protect citizens from dangerous secondhand smoke.

"(People) every year get lung cancer who have never smoked a cigarette in their life," he said, implying exposure to secondhand smoke may be to blame.

Harbicht said he did not believe a ban on smoking in outdoor venues such as parks would prevent people from developing lung cancer, but it would restrict their freedom.

"We're sticking our nose where it doesn't belong," Harbicht said of the proposed ban.

Tell us: What do you think? Would banning smoking in parks and recreation areas promote good health, or encroach upon the rights of individuals?