Milton bans smoking in parks and on public rec areas. Event organizers could get an out.

By order of the Milton City Council, smoking will no longer be tolerated at public parks, properties and recreational areas.

The council finalized passage of an ordinance March 14 prohibiting smoking and vaping "on public property specifically designated as being used for outdoor recreational or park purposes and where children regularly congregate."

It prohibits smoking and vaping on all city property except public right-of-ways, city spokeswoman Bethany Anderson said. It also bans leaving tobacco or vaping "waste" products such as cigarette butts behind.

The ordinance expressly states the ban will extend to areas used for such purposes as boating, golfing, camping, swimming, horseback riding, the ordinance states, and to archeological, scenic or scientific sites.

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The prohibition would extend to such areas as Jernigan's Landing, where concerts, festivals and events like Bands on the Blackwater are routinely held. Council members will decide in the next couple of weeks whether or not to allow event organizers to decide independently how they want to treat smoking at their events, Anderson said.

The ordinance went into effect immediately upon council passage, which occurred more than three hours into an evening meeting at which several topics were thoroughly debated. Most in attendance who spoke about the proposed ban seemed to be in favor of eliminating smoking.

Among those speaking was City Manager Randy Jorgenson.

"I'm a smoker and I support this. I don't consider it an infringement on my rights. I think it simply asks me to respect the rights of others," Jorgenson told the council. "I also think they should have the right to clean air. Professionally, I support the position taken by this counsel. Personally, I think this is a good act for the council to take."

Anderson said there has thus far been no pushback from smokers objecting to the ordinance.

"It's not really a big issue," she said. "We don't have people calling saying 'somebody is smoking in the park again.' "

Ordinance violations will be enforced initially "by telling people what's going on and using education as a tool," Anderson said.

More:Milton's Bands on the Blackwater returns for fall season. Here's the full schedule.

This week Tobacco Free Florida in Santa Rosa County issued a statement applauding passage of the Milton ordinance.

The new ordinance "will protect our children’s health, support tobacco users who want to quit and keep our community clean," the statement said. "Tobacco free spaces support our community in many ways. They improve health by providing fewer opportunities for youth to start smoking, and reduce secondhand smoke exposure. These policies also help lower cigarette litter, encourage people to make healthy choices and increase quit attempts."

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Milton Florida bans smoking in parks but events could be exception