Burbank may soon join cities curbing outdoor smoking

Burbank has moved closer to becoming the third Southern California city to ban some outdoor smoking, following in the footsteps of Calabasas and Santa Monica.

At its meeting Tuesday, the City Council voted 3 to 2 in favor of the ban, but members asked for revisions after hearing three hours of comments from 50 public speakers. The council then deliberated for two hours, ultimately voting to ask the city attorney to make about a dozen changes to the ordinance.

Senior Assistant City Atty. Joe McDougall was drafting the revised ordinance Wednesday and said it would be released to the public Friday for comment. He said he expected the council to pass it at next week’s meeting.

“It’s unlikely it wouldn’t pass now -- in fact, the revised version might pick up a few votes,” McDougall said, adding that state law requires a second reading for any alterations.

The ban would apply to city parks, including the Chandler Bikeway; outdoor dining areas at restaurants; and outdoor shopping areas, including the farmers market and pedestrian walkways downtown. Bus stops, ATMs, kiosks and movie lines would also be smoke-free.

But the council requested that outdoor shopping centers and restaurants be allowed to designate separate, remote areas for smokers, McDougall said.

The Burbank Police Department would be responsible for enforcing the ordinance. People caught smoking in prohibited areas could be charged with a misdemeanor or an infraction. Business owners who didn’t stop someone from smoking on their premises could also be prosecuted.

The ordinance would still allow people to smoke in private residences and on sidewalks in neighborhoods.

Calabasas is widely considered the first U.S. city to effectively ban all smoking in outdoor public areas. Santa Monica’s ordinance prohibits smoking within 20 feet of the entrances to public buildings and at the popular Third Street Promenade.

Last week, the Los Angeles City Council asked the city attorney to draft an addition to a current ordinance that would ban smoking in most city parks but not on golf courses.

Two other California cities, Belmont and Temecula, are considering prohibiting smoking in apartment buildings, which would go further than Burbank and its predecessors’ bans.

“We are most concerned about smoking in apartments and condos, parks and outdoor eateries,” said Belmont Mayor Coralin Feierbach, who expects a council vote on a public smoking ordinance in June, after city staff members finalize a draft within the next two months.

“I think more cities are lately awakening to passing smoking bans,” she said.

Burbank Mayor Todd Campbell and two council members directed the city’s staff to look into the matter in October after impassioned pleas from residents at City Council meetings. After seeing widespread community support expressed in dozens of e-mails, the council requested that an ordinance be drawn up.

If passed, the ban would take effect in May, McDougall said.

francisco.varaorta@latimes .com