Pawtucket, RI Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Recreational facility rule
- Smoking banned at all times
- Athletic facility rule
- Smoking limited to paved parking lots
- Slater Park exception
- Paved lots, paths, bike path only
- Fine per violation
- $50 civil fine
- Total ban zone
- Morley Field Complex
Summary
Pawtucket bans smoking and other tobacco use at all city playgrounds, swimming pools and passive parks, and at basketball and tennis courts next to recreation facilities, under City Code § 365-4. Tobacco use at Slater Park is banned outright except in paved parking areas, on paved walking paths, and on the Ten-Mile River Bike Path. Violations carry a $50 civil fine.
§ 365-4. Tobacco use restricted or prohibited. A. ... Smoking and other uses of tobacco products shall be restricted only to designated areas at all athletic facilities owned or operated by the City of Pawtucket. Paved parking areas at such facilities shall be the designated area(s) where tobacco use is permitted; provided, however, that there shall be no designated smoking area whatsoever at the Morley Field Complex. B. Smoking and other uses of tobacco products shall be prohibited at all times at recreational facilities and at athletic facility basketball and tennis courts adjacent to City recreational/playground facilities. C. Tobacco use is prohibited at Slater Park, except in paved parking areas, paved or concrete (or otherwise established) walking paths and upon the Ten-Mile River Bike Path.
Full Breakdown
Adopted April 9, 1998 by Ch. No. 2484 and expanded May 10, 2018 by Ch. No. 3159 to cover vaping devices, Chapter 365, Article II governs tobacco use at Pawtucket's outdoor recreation sites. The ordinance splits city-owned outdoor space into two tiers. " At "recreational facilities," meaning any playground, swimming pool or passive park under city ownership, § 365-4(B) goes further: smoking and tobacco use "shall be prohibited at all times," a blanket ban that also reaches basketball and tennis courts adjacent to those sites.
Slater Park, the city's best-known park near the historic Slater Mill site, gets its own carve-out at § 365-4(C): tobacco use is prohibited entirely except in paved parking areas, on paved or established walking paths, and on the Ten-Mile River Bike Path. The ordinance exempts Native American spiritual or cultural ceremonies with advance approval from the Director of Public Works under § 365-4(D), and it doesn't reach people smoking inside a vehicle traveling through or legally parked in a park under § 365-4(E). Public Works is directed to post conspicuous signage at these locations under § 365-6.
Violations & Fines
Any violation of the Article II smoking restrictions is declared a public nuisance and punished with a civil fine of $50 under § 365-5. Each act of prohibited smoking or tobacco use is treated as a separate violation, so repeated use at the same location during one visit can generate multiple fines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I smoke in a Pawtucket park?
Is smoking allowed at Pawtucket athletic fields?
What's the fine for smoking in a Pawtucket park where it's banned?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pawtucket
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Outdoor Smoking Restrictions in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle outdoor smoking restrictions.