Seattle Parks superintendent Tim Gallagher seems to have a new strategy for making decisions: Make a decision, wait for media backlash, change mind at end of day but leave possibility original decision might not go away completely adopt Parks Board recommendation.
In an e-mail, the department just said they are backtracking on the smoking ban in Seattle parks they announced only hours earlier.
SEATTLE PARKS SUPERINTENDENT RELAXES RULE ON SMOKING IN PARKS
Seattle Parks and Recreation Superintendent Tim Gallagher today decided to relax the rule that would have banned smoking in parks effective April 1, 2010, and to approve the recommendation of the Board of Park Commissioners.
The Board recommended this language in the Code of Conduct: “Smoking, chewing, or other tobacco use is banned within 25 feet of other park patrons and in play areas, beaches, or playgrounds.”
“Based on the input from the public that followed my initial decision,” Gallagher said, I have decided that a gradual approach to a smoking ban is reasonable.”
The code of conduct is adopted under the Superintendent’s rulemaking authority, as outlined in Chapter 3.02 of the Seattle Municipal Code. The code of conduct brings together in a single document all the behaviors that could cause the City to withdraw a person’s permission to be in a park. Some provisions exist in the Revised Code of Washington, some in the Seattle Municipal Code, some in existing rules, and some are new. To see the whole code of conduct, please see http://www.seattle.gov/parks/Publications/policy.htm, and note that the revised language on smoking will be posted tomorrow.
CHS hadn't even gotten around to posting about the ban -- which sounds like a good idea but isn't -- so we'll scrap that lovely post in favor of this update. At least Parks has sped up the process on this stuff. The Perugia Park decision wasn't reversed until the next day after it was announced.
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