Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Campus Smoking Ban May Be Expanded : Health: Practice is already banned in offices and classrooms, but College of the Canyons trustees give initial OK to stricter requirements.

The ban on smoking at the College of the Canyons may be expanded to include the outdoor sports stadium, uncovered stairwells and a 20-foot area surrounding campus doorways.

Smoking is already banned in offices and classrooms, but college trustees Wednesday gave initial approval to the stricter requirements.

“Basically, what we’ve done is taken smoking out of classrooms and out of hallways and put it outside,” Trustee Bruce Fortine said.

The proposed ban also applies to formal campus events held outside, such as a recent cultural arts festival or the weekly farmers’ market.

The ban will come up for a final vote April 20. If approved, it would take effect immediately, according to college public information officer Sue Bozman.

“That doesn’t mean you can’t smoke in the parking lot,” Bozman said.

College officials have been discussing smoking prohibitions since November.

“From the college standpoint, we’re concerned with the health issue,” Fortine said. “There was a feeling by the board that a (complete) no-smoking policy would be too restrictive.”

Smoking has been prohibited for more than six months at all indoor and outdoor facilities and events involving Santa Clarita’s public high schools and junior high schools.

Trustees at the William S. Hart Union High School District expanded their restrictions to outdoor events in August to qualify for $30,000 a year in federal Tobacco Use and Prevention Education funds.

Meanwhile, the city has been considering a smoking ban that would prohibit smoking in restaurants, workplaces and enclosed public areas. Commercial businesses such as banks, malls, theaters and Laundromats are also covered.

The City Council approved the ordinance in December, but changed direction a month later when nearly 200 people packed City Hall. Restaurant owners said their customers would be driven into nearby unincorporated areas where no ban exists.

Two more public hearings will be held to discuss Santa Clarita’s tobacco control ordinance before it is voted upon. Those meetings have been delayed by the Jan. 17 earthquake and its battering of City Hall.