Volusia restricts smoking in parks

Publication Date: 2007-07-24

• Author:Christine Show
• Publication:Orlando (FL) Sentinel

Hey, smokers: Please quit stinking up our playgrounds.

That's essentially the message from Volusia as it launches the first countywide ban in Metro Orlando aimed at keeping playgrounds smoke-free. Lake isn't far behind. Orange County and Orlando officials are open to the idea, though they say a ban isn't in the works because playground puffing hasn't been a problem.

At the same time, some cities in Central Florida, including Deltona and Lake Mary, are looking for ways to ban smoking where kids play...

Local governments in Florida are discouraged from imposing tough, outdoor smoking bans because of a 2005 opinion from then-State Attorney General Charlie Crist who said the state -- not local governments -- regulates "smoking inside and outside a public place."

That's the reason Lake Mary's plan for a smoking ban in areas where kids play has stalled.