Iola City Council members agreed that parts of Riverside Park should be off limits to smokers.
They stopped short, however, of making all parks smoke-free.
The Council heard a plea Monday from Allen County Rural Health Initiative members to ban all smoking products from each of the city’s parks and trails.
They voted, 5-1, to have Recreation Director Jason Bauer work with the Rural Health Initiative to recommend designated smoking areas in the park, then to bring those recommendations back to the Council for a final vote.
Councilman Jon Wells cast the lone dissenting vote, noting his opposition to a smoking ban along the city’s trails.
Council members Nancy Ford and Don Becker were absent.
Bobbi Bonds of Thrive Allen County, speaking on behalf of the Rural Health Initiative, spoke about the dangers of second-hand smoke, and seeing cigarette butts strewn about.
“Smoke-free parks are an important public health initiative,” Bonds said.
The consortium of health care professionals considered recommended designated smoking areas, Bonds said, but eventually considered it easier for the city to institute a blanket ban.
The Rural Health Initiative notably left out smokeless tobacco from its recommended ban, Bonds said.
“Though smokeless tobacco is a growing problem in Allen County, we have opted to start with what we believe is a no-brainer: banning smoking since it impacts more than just the person smoking,” she said.
The Council also heard from a pair of mothers, Christine Tholen, who spoke about seeing her children pick up discarded cigarette butts and put them in their mouths.
Lisse Regehr, speaking on behalf of Iolan Leslie Skahan, said Skahan was discouraged by seeing a number of smokers near the newly developed Mothers of Miracles (MOMs) playground area at Riverside Park.
COUNCILMAN Aaron Franklin said he supported the group’s end goal — a healthier community — but saw issues with a blanket ban.
“We are pushing the envelope,” he said, noting Iola already has supported a Tobacco 21 ordinance, which prohibits the sale of tobacco products locally to adults under 21, even though the state smoking age is 18. The Tobacco 21 ordinance takes effect June 1.
Franklin said a blanket ban would discourage smokers from coming to the park at all.
