Radnor bans smoking in parks, playgrounds and trails
“Health Promotion Council and Clean Air Council congratulate the township on adopting this initiative for the health of all its residents. This action is particularly significant because it includes prohibiting electronic cigarettes that are increasingly being used by teens,” Brendlinger wrote in an email.
Commissioners John Nagle and Richard Booker opposed the resolution.
Nagle said that it was “overly broad” and noted that the parks are for the public and “some of the public smokes.”
Booker said that while he favors banning smoking around children, he is concerned about enforcement and also said the resolution was overly broad to make entire parks into nonsmoking areas. And philosophically, “I do not believe government should deprive people of their liberty (to smoke),” he said. Booker also contended that there is no medical documentation that vaping is “harmful in any way.”
Commissioner Luke Clark said, “I see it as a benefit for children using the parks. I see Disney just did this at their parks in California and Florida.”
Resident Baron Gemmer suggested changing the wording to include adults, not just children, since no one should be exposed to second-hand smoke. Tim Frey, another resident, said the word “township” should be added to make it clear that it applies only to township playgrounds not to other playgrounds.
If called, the police will issue warnings but there will not be fines for smokers, said township Manager Robert Zienkowski. But if groups who have been issued permits to use the parks allow smoking, their permits can be revoked.
“I hope there is a public information campaign that will go sideby-side with this,” said Abel. Zienkowski said that that Tammy Cohen, the director of parks and community programing, will reach out to various teams, community groups and others who use the parks.
“We’ll let the schools know about this, too,” said Zienkowski.