Moline, Ill. Bans Smoking in City Parks

Moline, Ill., one of the five municipalities that make up the Quad Cities of Iowa and Illinois, became the first to ban smoking in its parks on Tuesday night, as the city council voted to expand an existing ordinance to cover nearly all park land in the city.

Prior to Ordinance 3025-2014 being passed, the city already prohibited smoking at all playgrounds, the town’s sports complex and select areas of two parks, but now all park areas will be smoke-free. The ordinance makes no mention of other tobacco products that aren’t smoked, nor does it mention electronic cigarettes or similar devices.

There are a pair of exemptions in the ban, one for parking lots next to city parks and another for the city cemetery. Fines for violating the ban carry over from the previous rules, with first-time offenders subject to a $50 citation, $100 for a second offense and $250 for a third violation.

The change goes into effect immediately, with signage to go up in the near future at the entrances to all parks as well as in other areas where people may neeto be reminded of the ban, according to a report from KWQC.com.

Moline has a population of nearly 45,000 residents.