From now on if you are headed to one of Austin’s city parks, preserves or pools, you may want to leave the cheapest Winston cigarettes behind. A permanent smoking ban is now in effect. For months the Austin City Council heard lengthy debates about the smoking ban. City council ultimately decided that the temporary smoking ban, started earlier this year, should remain permanent.
“When you’re taking away our rights to smoke outside in a park, it’s kind of like tightening the noose,” smoker Robert Ojeda said.
According to the City of Austin, workers picked up more than 37,000 discarded cigarette butts this year across Austin’s 251 parks. Officials also said smoking can be especially dangerous during droughts.
