Pleasanton-Starting next summer, smoking will be banned in all public areas and private balconies or on the decks of townhouses, apartments, and buildings with three or more outbuildings in Pleasanton.

The city council unanimously passed new rules to further curb exposure to harmful second-hand smoke. These rules apply to houses regardless of whether they are occupied by tenants or owners, and will take effect in July.

Councillors Julie Testa and Valerie Arkin want the rules to go further and restrict smoking in these houses because they worry that the smoke will seep into walls, sockets or fixtures and affect the health of other neighbors. Testa said she has experienced this in the past.

However, the City Council Majority Mayor Karla Brown and members Jack Balch and Kathy Narum rejected the proposal, insisting it would be excessive.

"I am very disappointed that we put property and details above the health and safety of the residents. I am speechless," Testa said at the December 7 meeting.

These rules mean that anyone living in these types of attached houses is not allowed to smoke in indoor and outdoor public spaces, such as corridors, lobbies, elevators, stairwells, community rooms, passages, courtyards, playgrounds, swimming pools, and parking lots. According to the report of the city staff, the garage.

City Deputy Public Prosecutor Larissa Seto also stated that these regulations apply to private outdoor areas, such as any balcony, deck, fenced area, terrace or porch in the home.

"These are the concerns we heard from residents saying,'When my neighbor downstairs smokes on their terrace, I can't even open my sliding glass door, or it floats and affects me,'" Seto said Meeting.

The rules prohibit smoking of any kind, including lighted cigarettes, pipes or hookahs, and electronic cigarettes or electronic cigarettes. The city’s apartment complex has enacted similar rules.

Disagreements on the degree of compliance with the rules have caused some tensions among some Council members.

"I think we have downplayed this," Akin said. "To be honest, I take it for granted. We will do our best to protect our children and vulnerable groups."

Balch said that he believes that the adoption of the revised rules is "an important step in strengthening the smoking ban on private property in our community," while still "respecting property rights and your ability to enjoy freedom at home."

Testa retorted, "It's not without smoke and health hazards."

Mayor Brown said that she thinks the city council’s action is important because it will implement "smoking restrictions that do not currently exist," but said she cannot comply with the rules that prohibit people from smoking in their own homes.

"So someone spent $1 million to buy a townhouse, and they are a smoker... and you made a major change in their lives," Brown said.

Brown also pointed out that city staff stated that state building regulations require apartments and townhouses to have independent ventilation systems.

"Units do not share indoor air through a ventilation system, so second-hand smoke from indoor smoking poses less risk to people in other units," the city report said.

Several cities in the Bay Area have indoor smoking bans similar to those adopted by Pleasanton, including nearby Danville.

Testa said that the committee should be willing to take a tougher stance, just as most people voted to ban the sale of flavored tobacco products and e-cigarettes last year.

Before the board vote, a few people convened a meeting to comment on the proposed decree.

David Stark, a representative of the East Bay Association of Realtors, said that all owners of affected properties should be contacted directly. The city sends notices of the proposed rules to the townhouse and apartment owners’ associations and their management companies.

"This is indeed an important issue. In addition to HOA, there are stakeholders who need to participate in the dialogue," he said.

The staff of the city government said that law enforcement will be carried out based on the complaint and be handled by the police station or the law enforcement department of the city government.

Those found to be in violation of the new smoking regulations will receive a city warning for the first violation, a fine of $100 and a subpoena for the second violation, a $200 penalty for the third violation within a year, and a fourth violation within a year $500 for this violation. One year.

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