Dublin enacts smoking ban in care facilities

DUBLIN -- Stepping up its battle against secondhand smoke, the city has enacted a round-the-clock ban on smoking inside residences that provide licensed care -- even if clients are not present.

The City Council unanimously approved the ordinance Tuesday. It bans all smoking inside homes where day care, adult care or health services are provided. It will go into effect in May.

The city has been interested in passing such an ordinance, because studies show that particulate matter from cigarette smoke lodges in a home's floors, furniture and walls, potentially causing health problems.

Dublin police will enforce the ban based on complaints, officials said. Care facilities would be fined no more than $100 for one violation within a year, followed by $200 for a second violation and $500 for each violation thereafter within the same year.

The ordinance is one of several Dublin has passed in its self- declared war against secondhand smoke. The city refuses sponsorships from tobacco companies for city events. It declared secondhand smoke a public nuisance, which eases the burden of proof in small claims court if nonsmokers cannot resolve issues with smokers.

In other action Tuesday, the council ordered a study regarding a request to change the zoning of a portion of the Valley Christian Center's property.

The center hopes to sell 1.4 acres of land near Dublin Boulevard and Inspiration Drive to a private developer. The center would use the money to renovate its sanctuary, said Bryan Tebbutt, the center's executive administrator.

"We really don't have a proposal," Tebbutt told the council Tuesday night. "(We) don't have a buyer."

City planners will study whether it is feasible to switch the existing zoning from semi-public -- which allows for churches, nonprofits and housing for nonprofit agencies -- to a residential

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