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Piedmont students urge council to ban commercial tobacco sales; youth callers back the proposal
Summary
Students from Piedmont High presented a proposal to prohibit retail tobacco and nicotine sales in the city, citing local youth-use data and flavored‑tobacco precedents in other Bay Area cities. Dozens of online and in‑person youth supporters asked council to act; council members said they would consider the matter and check legal authority before placing it on a future agenda.
Student members of Piedmont High School’s Tobacco Use Prevention Education club presented a draft city‑code amendment asking the City of Piedmont to ban retail sales of tobacco and nicotine products.
"We're here to present a proposal to prohibit the sale of tobacco products here in Piedmont," said Diego, speaking for the student group. The students cited local Healthy Kids Survey results and argued a sales ban would reduce youth access and complement prior local steps, including a flavored‑tobacco ban.
Multiple youth callers and Eden Youth representatives called or joined online to urge action. Speaking on behalf of the Eden Youth Advisory Council, a caller reading for Vanessa Hernandez said Piedmont could “be a front runner in the fight against big tobacco by ending the sale of all commercial tobacco products citywide,” and asked the council to act while the town currently has only one retailer temporarily closed for renovations.
Isabella Velasquez, president of Eden Youth’s advisory council, and other student speakers said local precedents including Ross, Tiburon, Beverly Hills and Manhattan Beach show municipalities can restrict retail sales, and emphasized that a ban would regulate stores, not criminalize people who use tobacco.
City staff and council took no immediate action. Mayor Betsy Smigel Anderson thanked the students and said the council would take the information under advisement; later in the meeting a council member asked staff to check legal counsel and report back before placing the item on a future agenda. No ordinance or resolution was introduced during the meeting.
Why it matters: the student presenters and youth callers framed the proposal as a preventive, public‑health step to reduce initiation among minors and as a way for Piedmont to follow other Bay Area cities that have already curtailed retail tobacco sales.
What’s next: council members signaled interest in hearing more but said they need legal analysis about the city’s authority and potential challenges before directing staff to draft an ordinance.
