The Glendale City Council plans to make the city healthier by amending a smoke-ban ordinance. Council members will vote on the matter on Sept. 30.

According to Section One of the ordinance, the purpose of the ban is to “protect the public [by ensuring] a cleaner and more hygienic environment for the city.” It also aims to “strike a balance between the needs of [smokers and] nonsmokers.”

The ordinance hopes to do so by banishing smoking on all city property. In addition, smoking will be prohibited on all public accessible private property such as shopping malls and restaurants. However, the ordinance will allow public smoking on a street or sidewalk 20 feet away from a public area, in smoking permitted areas that the city manager may designate within a public area, and other private properties.

“People can now enjoy their meals and drinks without risking their health to secondhand smoke,” American Lung Association Advocacy and Program Manager Steven Gallegos said.

The citation for the first violation of this ordinance is $100. The next is $200, the third is $500. Three or more violations result in a misdemeanor charge and a court trial.

“Not everyone will obey the law, [but] it will be a major improvement to what we have in place now, so it is worth doing,” Amiee Klem said, president of the grass-roots organization No Butts in Glendale. “In time, as people become used to the ordinance, it will be more and more unusual to see someone violating it.”

The proposed ban has drawn mixed responses from Glendale residents.

“The ordinance is a good thing because we can cut down on secondhand smoke and litter,” Opportunity room adviser Kevin Miramontes said. “It will also give Glendale a better look.”

However, government teacher Nareg Keshishian feels that “there are marginal and deleterious effects of secondhand smoke but I don’t think it can kill.”

If the ordinance is passed, Glendale will be the fourth city in Southern California to ban outdoor smoking. Cities with the ban include Burbank, Calabasas and Santa Monica.