Utica has no ordinance specifically targeting backyard smokers. As cooking devices burning charcoal or untreated wood, they are exempt from the open-burning ban and must be attended. Excessive smoke can still be enforced as a nuisance, and Fire Code clearances apply.
There is no Utica city rule dedicated to residential smokers or pellet grills. Because a smoker is a cooking device, it falls under the 6 NYCRR Part 215 exemption for small fires used for cooking, provided only charcoal or untreated wood is used and the device is attended until extinguished. General Fire Code recreational-cooking clearances apply — keep the smoker away from siding, decks, and overhangs. Persistent, heavy smoke drifting onto neighbors can be addressed under the city's nuisance and property-maintenance provisions if it becomes unreasonable. Near apartments, the state Fire Code's limits on open-flame cooking within 10 feet of multi-family buildings apply.
No smoker-specific penalty; excessive smoke may be cited as a nuisance, and unsafe placement violates the Fire Code.
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