SIOUX FALLS, SD (KELO AM) Sioux Falls City Council is re-visiting the challenges and advantages of a outdoor public smoking ban on city property.
The Sanford Premier Center's Terry Torkildson briefed Council Monday on how smoking is now handled outside the facility. Patrons are allowed to go outside to designated smoking areas behind barriers and then come back in. It's not perfect, but it works. But the issue may become academic with increased security concerns.
"In working with Homeland and some other organizations I think its just going to take one more incident and it will push us over the edge and the responsible thing will be that once your're in the building, unless it's an emergency, you're here to stay," explained Torkildson.
Council also discussed smoking at the city's municipal golf courses. One idea was to ban smoking around the clubhouse and on the patios, but to continue to allow it out on the course.
Councilor Michelle Erpenbach, a big supporter of a ban, said that this not not "inventing a wheel" and that other cities are already doing this.
Council last month backed away from a full outdoor smoking ban.