Smoking on patios is another step closer to being a thing of the past.
The city’s Standing Policy Committee on Protection, Community Services and Parks voted three to one Tuesday in favour of amending Winnipeg’s outdoor smoking bylaw to ban smoking on patios.
Councillor Ross Eadie was the lone holdout voting against the changes, as he said the revised bylaw discriminates against smokers, “ostracizing them from society and treating them like crap”.
Should the changes to the bylaw pass at Executive Policy Committee then at council, smokers will be prohibited from lighting up outdoors at restaurants and bars or face fines.
READ MORE: Patio smoking ban closer to becoming a reality in Winnipeg
The proposed amendments would see both smokers and patio owners penalized should they be found violating the new rules, which would come into effect April 1.
There is no buffer zone included in the updated bylaw draft, meaning anywhere immediately outside patios is fair game for smokers.
And it’s not just cigarettes covered in the amendments: any device capable of creating secondhand smoke – including e-cigarettes, pipes, hookahs and marijuana once it’s legalized – would get you a fine if you’re found smoking it on a Winnipeg patio.
Councillor Mike Pagtakhan said three quarters of Winnipeggers surveyed were in favour of enforcing a ban on smoking in outdoor spaces attached to institutions serving food and drinks, with the majority also agreeing pubs and clubs shouldn’t be exempt from any potential changes.