OCEAN CITY – A code amendment banning smoking and vaping in all city parks will advance to a first reading following a favorable vote Tuesday.
This week, the Mayor and Council agreed to advance a code amendment making smoking and vaping unlawful in all public parks to a first reading. Ocean City Recreation and Parks Director Susan Petito said the change would eliminate designated smoking areas at Northside Park.
“What’s happened is they are not using the designated smoking areas,” she told the council Tuesday. “I believe it’s time for us to make it a clean, across-the-board statement that there is no smoking in parks throughout Ocean City.”
In 2015, the council passed an ordinance making smoking and vaping unlawful in all public parks except Northside Park, where it would be allowed within 15 feet of designated smoking areas. That decision, officials say, was made to accommodate the vast number of smokers who participated in softball tournaments at Northside Park.
However, Petito told the council this week that those designated smoking areas are not being appropriately used, and that unlawful smoking and vaping had increased throughout the park to include the unlawful use of cannabis products in public spaces.
“Unfortunately, even with staff/promoter efforts to curtail unlawful smoking, participants are ignoring the Town Code in reference to smoking at Northside Park, and are not limiting their smoking to the designated smoking areas,” a memo in the council packet reads. “In order to simplify and clean up the Town’s effort to keep park environments clean, healthy and fun, it is practical to act and remove the designated smoking areas from Northside Park to make it clear that no smoking and vaping is permitted in ANY Ocean City public park.”
To that end, Petito told the council this week she was recommending the town code be amended to make smoking and vaping unlawful in all public parks within town, effectively eliminating designated smoking areas from Northside Park.
“We’re requesting to modify the ordinance to say that,” she said.
Council Secretary Tony DeLuca questioned where people would be able to smoke and vape. Petito said they would not be allowed to do so in any public parks under the proposed amendment.
“They will not be permitted to do it in the park at all …,” she replied. “They would have to leave.”
After further discussion, the council voted 6-1, with Councilman Peter Buas opposed, to advance the proposed amendment to a first reading.
