Half Moon Bay to adopt smoking restrictions

Those surveys — one of which posed general questions on smoking restrictions and the other asked about smoking in multi-family complexes — saw 344 responses combined. Seventy percent of respondents to both surveys support a smoking ban in outdoor recreation areas, including parks, beaches, trails and campgrounds with 29.5 percent opposed; and when asked about other outdoor areas where smoking should be prohibited, 17 percent wrote in downtown, Main Street or sidewalks in retail areas.

The multi-family survey found that 49.5 percent of respondents live in housing where smoking is not permitted, and 76 percent of them favor a smoking ban in the common areas of multi-family housing with 63.5 percent supporting a ban in individual units. There was little support for a medical cannabis exception.

Those results were promising enough for most councilmembers to move beyond previous discussions of buffer zones and restricted areas and propose a ban on smoking outdoors altogether, though they conceded such regulations will be difficult to enforce.

“Outdoor smoking should be against the law,” Councilman Adam Eisen said. “None of this is enforceable, but from a decorative standpoint, I’m for banning it in backyards too.”

Outgoing Councilman Rick Kowalczyk said he’s interested in banning smoking in certain outdoor spaces like parks, but expressed some hesitation about an all-encompassing outdoor ban.

“I get stuck on smoking in public. I don’t want to infringe on the rights of smokers, but I don’t want to inhale other people’s smoke,” he said, suggesting that the intent of the regulation should be to limit second-hand smoke.

Eisen countered that non-smokers have a right to breathe clean air, and went on to play devil’s advocate in identifying a potential unintended consequence of the outdoor ban, which could encourage parents to smoke indoors in the vicinity of their children rather than outside.

“Although I disapprove of smoking near kids, it’s not my job to regulate parenting,” said Mayor Deborah Penrose, adding that she supports the outdoor ban.

As for smoking in multi-family buildings, Penrose suggested designated smoking areas in those buildings while Vice Mayor Harvey Rarback proposed a compromise in which smoking is banned in enclosed areas where smoke can travel to other units or common spaces.

City Attorney Catherine Engberg said one approach is to leave smoking regulations up to the managers of apartment buildings or ban smoking in common rooms specifically.

The proposed ordinances are meant to expand on current state laws, which ban smoking in California bars, restaurants and nightclubs. Belmont, Burlingame, South San Francisco, Foster City, San Mateo, South San Francisco and unincorporated San Mateo County are a few of the other local areas where similar smoking bans have been enacted.

Ruddock requested two draft ordinances return to the council, one of which would ban smoking in multi-family buildings. But for this phase of regulations, the council appeared uninterested in a ban in individual units.

Engberg said staff is also planning to draft a tobacco retailer ordinance that may require special licenses to sell tobacco, prohibit tobacco sales in pharmacies and limit sales of flavored tobacco and electronic cigarettes as well.

zachary@smdailyjournal.com

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