I'd say it's unrealistic - you can't legislate the air.

Hi, not only can you not legislate the air, but you shouldn't be trying to control other people's lives to this extent. Have you ever considered what you're breathing when walking down a street with cars around? There are limits to what your comfort can dictate to others.

No offense, but the air HAS been legislated! You are forgetting the enormous number of places where smoking is not permitted - by law. Your comment about controlling the lives of other people is the battle cry of smokers who, while they know of all the harmful effects, don't care enough about their own health to do something about it.

I was a smoker for over 40 years and I'm proud to say I quit 3 years ago. The guy in the apartment next to mine is a heavy smoker and the stench that comes from his place when he opens his door could knock me down. There's not much I can do about it but to put up and shut up or move to a smoke free building.
Good Luck....

You can't legislate the OUTDOOR air! You are not being reasonable.

Thing is, a lot of smokers I know don't smoke inside their homes, either because they don't want to smell it up or because a family member doesn't want them smoking inside.

So a ban on outside smoking might take away their only place to smoke. I know many people would think this a good thing, but they already live in this place. Changing the rules after they've moved in and settled isn't really fair.

I'm sure there's a way that the co-op could make this a rule, but I think you would have to grandfather in current residents, and the rule would only apply to newcomers.

Your comment about grandfathering current residents is right on the money!! It is the definitive answer to my question. My neighbors moved in with the expectation of being able to smoke on their terrace.

You can't legislate the OUTDOOR air! You are not being reasonable.

I'm coming into this late but many cities and counties have regulations forbidding smoking in outside areas such as dog parks and recreation areas. And ordinances on smoking within xx feet of a building. So I can see a co-op building regulating smoking throughout the entire property.

my place, if you smoke, you are ONLY allowed to do it inside your apartment, not out in your patio...it is in the lease agreement

As much as I hate smoker, there's nothing you can do

In my town, smoking on a patio or terrace or near a window is illegal. see link below, although it is lengthy.

We have a rude neighbor below us who smokes on her terrace and when we have out sliding door open, the smoke goes right in our apartment! She is intruding on our space!

Here is a link that might be useful: Pleasant Hill, CA ordinance

If this is a co-op situation, then the smokers own their apartments. It's not as simple as creating a no-smoking rule and then letting people who don't like the new rule leave at the end of their leases. The smokers bought their homes knowing that they could smoke in or just outside them. Changing the rules and forcing them to sell, in a depressed real estate market, may simply not be possible. A lot depends on the way the co-op agreement is written.

But the co-op could address the issue of outdoor smoke drifting into other units. Perhaps the terrace smokers could use a fan to direct the smoke away from the building? Or they can't smoke when other windows are open, or something like that.

And certainly, the co-op can decide, moving forward for new residents, that no smoking be allowed in the building or on the terraces, or that smoking be allowed only indoors.

lori59-"my place, if you smoke, you are ONLY allowed to do it inside your apartment, not out in your patio...it is in the lease agreement"

Great policy.

If I lived near an inconsiderate neighbor who didn't care if their smoke drifted into my space, I'd get one of those large fans (that are used in bowling alleys, etc) and point it toward the source of the smoke each and every time I went outside to enjoy the 'fresh air'.