There’s a good chance that the Portland City Council will be tackling a park smoking ban proposal in early 2015, as on Wednesday the Portland Parks Board issued a citizen advisory board’s recommendation that the city’s 209 public parks ban the use of all tobacco products and e-cigarettes. In May, the parks board announced that a committee was being formed to explore possible legislation to achieve the ban.

While at this stage it is still a recommendation, Parks Commissioner Amanda Fritz told OregonLive.com that she is planning on bringing it to the council in January with the hopes of getting it approved quickly.

In addition to parks, the proposal calls for a ban on tobacco products in recreation and natural areas, while golf courses and Portland International Raceway would be given a three year timeframe to phase out their designated smoking areas.

This summer, the city of Forest Grove, a suburb of Portland, passed a smoking ban at all city-owned and leased properties.

With a population of nearly 610,000 people, Portland is Oregon’s most populous city, while the Portland metro area numbers more than 2.3 million residents.

Avatar photo

Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.