In the News » Vista approves smoking ban in parks: Santee now only city without smoke free parks, North County Times, September 23, 2009
Vista approves smoking ban in parks: Santee now only city without smoke free parks, North County Times, September 23, 2009

The Vista City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a ban on smoking or chewing tobacco in city parks. The ban applies to 13 parks, their parking lots, the Moonlight Amphitheater, The Wave Waterpark and areas outside the Vista Library and Civic Center. The ban will take effect in 30 days.

City officials proposed fines of up to $250 for people caught smoking in the parks, but Councilman Bob Campbell proposed a warning period until residents become familiar with the new ordinance.

"We should have an education process," he said. "I hope we take it gradually and don't get people angry."

Assistant Public Services Director Bill Fortmueller said the ban will help alleviate second-hand smoke concerns, promote a healthy example for children and prevent the litter and fire hazard caused by cigarette butts.

The lone holdout for smokers is Santee in East County, said Debra Kelley, senior advocacy director of the American Lung Association's San Diego County chapter.

"It will really discourage kids from smoking because they won't see people smoking," Kelley said.

The drive to make Vista parks smoke-free was led by the Vista Community Clinic, said the city's Assistant Public Services Director Bill Fortmueller. So far, there's been no opposition, he said, and the matter is listed on the council's consent calendar where it would pass without discussion unless a council member objects.

He said the effort grew out of a "concern to keep the parks and trails healthy and pleasant."

Smoking just doesn't fit in with parks, said Gena Knutson, project manager for the clinic's Tobacco Control Project.

"There's a lot of youth that use the parks, a lot of people bring their dogs ---- it's kind of a healthy atmosphere," Knutson said.

Not only is second-hand smoke a health concern, but cigarette butts are also a litter problem and a potential fire hazard during dry weather, Knutson and Fortmueller said.

Vista already bans smoking or the use of any tobacco products within 50 feet of tot lots in city parks.

"This is kind of completing (the ban), making a whole package," Fortmueller said.

So far, no one has contacted Vista City Hall to object to the proposed ban, said Vista Communications Officer Andrea McCullough.

In other cities where similar bans were enacted, there has been strong public support, Knutson said.

"The majority of people don't smoke," Knutson said. "The social norms have changed so much and people realize the danger of smoking."

The Vista ban would apply to 13 city parks, their parking lots, the Moonlight Amphitheatre, The Wave Waterpark and areas outside the Vista Library and Civic Center, Fortmueller said.

And puffing in parks could prove costly once the ban is in place.

First-time offenders could be fined up to $50, McCullough said. Puff again within the same year and the fine would be up to $100, while the third offense would carry a fine of up to $250, she said.

The cost to the city for extending the smoking ban would be about $500 to install no-smoking signs, city analyst Donna Meester said in a report to the council.

The move to ban outdoor smoking in North County started in 2003 in Solana Beach when a group of students told the Solana Beach City Council that they had collected 6,400 discarded cigarette butts at the beach in an hour.

Since then, the push to limit smoking in public has gained momentum, Kelley said. El Cajon has the strictest ban, barring smoking in virtually all public places with a fine of up to $500 for violators.

Call staff writer Ray Huard at 760-901-4062