Greensboro, NC Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- City Code § 10-6
- Civil penalty
- $25 per violation
- Restaurant non-smoking seating
- 25% of 50+ indoor seats
- Covers
- Elevators, museums, theatres, big retail, city buildings/vehicles
- Does not cover
- Parks, sidewalks, other outdoor space
Summary
Greensboro bans smoking in a defined list of enclosed public places, elevators, museums, libraries, theatres, large retail stores, city buildings and city or transit vehicles, under City Code § 10-6. The rule stops at the building line: it does not restrict smoking in parks, sidewalks, or other outdoor public spaces.
(a) Generally. No person shall smoke or carry a lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe or match or use any spark, flame or fire-producing device in any of the following places: (1) Elevators, regardless of capacity, for use by the general public. (2) Public areas of museums, art galleries, public libraries, natural science center, and indoor public recreational centers... (4) Retail stores designed and arranged to accommodate more than two hundred (200) persons, or in which twenty-five (25) persons are regularly employed... (5) Duly designated non-smoking area of a restaurant... with an indoor seating capacity of fifty (50) or more seats shall designate a non-smoking area consisting of at least twenty-five (25) percent of the indoor seating capacity... (6) In any building owned, leased as lessor, or the area leased as lessee and occupied by the City of Greensboro... (7) Any place in or on a city owned vehicle or in or on a public transportation vehicle owned or leased by the City of Greensboro...
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 132).
Full Breakdown
Section 10-6 of the Greensboro City Code prohibits smoking or carrying a lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe, match, or any spark- or flame-producing device in seven categories of enclosed public places: public elevators; the public areas of museums, art galleries, public libraries, the natural science center, and indoor public recreation centers; theatre seating areas and adjacent aisles; retail stores built to hold more than 200 people or that regularly employ 25 or more workers (unless the fire inspector approves a designated smoking room as a non-hazard); restaurants with 50 or more indoor seats, which must set aside at least 25 percent of that seating as non-smoking; any building owned, leased, or occupied by the City of Greensboro or its agencies; and any city-owned or transit vehicle.
Bars, cocktail lounges, and rooms used for private functions are exempt from the restaurant non-smoking requirement. The ordinance does not reach outdoor public spaces such as parks, plazas, or sidewalks, it is a building- and vehicle-specific rule, not a citywide outdoor ban. Property owners and managers who knowingly let someone violate the section without asking them to stop are treated the same as the smoker for penalty purposes.
Violations & Fines
First-time violators after the January 1, 1990 effective date received a warning only; every violation since then draws a $25 civil penalty, issued by certified mail or personal delivery and payable to the city tax collector within 14 days. Removing or defacing a required no-smoking placard, or the separate misdemeanor track under subsections (b)/(c), is a Class 3 misdemeanor under G.S. § 14-4 in addition to the $25 penalty.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I smoke in a Greensboro city park?
What happens if I get caught smoking somewhere banned?
Do Greensboro restaurants have to offer non-smoking seating?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Greensboro
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