News and Events
Residential Buildings in Indian River County
are Going Smoke-Free
Policies Protect Residents From Secondhand Smoke and Smoking-Related Fires
May 16, 2014
VERO BEACH , FL – Smoke-free multiunit housing, a growing trend throughout the country, has made its way to Indian River County.
Several residential properties in Indian River County have implemented smoke-free policies for the entire property:
- Florida Baptist Retirement Center, Vero Beach
- The Brennity at Vero Beach
- Veta’s We Care Assisted Living, Sebastian, FL
“Florida Baptist Retirement Center is a health conscious, Christian, non-profit,” said Sonya Crawford, RN, Director of Admissions and Outreach. “People appreciate being around other non-smokers, both residents and employees, who are living a smoke free life.”
Taking steps in the right direction are a growing list of properties that have chosen to become 100% smoke free indoors. These properties may ban smoking in enclosed hallways, pool areas, or other outdoor areas, but have chosen to provide designated smoking areas for residents, employees and guests. The list includes:
- Country Inn & Suites, Vero Beach
- Disney’s Vero Beach Resort
- Green Gables Assisted Living, Vero Beach
- Horizon Bay Retirement Living, Vero Beach
- Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites, Vero Beach Oceanside
- Hampton Inn Vero Beach
- John’s Island House Condominiums
- The Place at Vero Beach
- St. Francis Manor, Vero Beach
- Secondhand smoke exposure is causally linked to heart disease, stroke, several cancers, lower respiratory illness, and impaired lung function.
- Each year, among U.S. nonsmokers, exposure to secondhand smoke causes an estimated 33,000 premature deaths from heart disease and about 3,400 premature deaths from lung cancer.
- Nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke at home or at work increase their risk of developing heart disease by 25 to 30 percent and their risk of developing lung cancer by 20 to 30 percent.
- Secondhand smoke can trigger an asthma attack. A severe asthma attack can put a child’s life in danger.
- In the first two years of life, children exposed to secondhand smoke have more than a 50 percent increased risk of getting bronchitis and pneumonia.
- Infants exposed to secondhand smoke are at a greater risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). SIDS is the sudden, unexplained, unexpected death of an infant in the first year of life. SIDS is the leading cause of death in otherwise healthy infants.
“Lots of clients don’t want to consider living in a house that has been smoked in because of the major clean-up involved in removing the smell and residue,” said Natalie Rankin of Hometown Realty. Homestyle Realty manages tri-plex rentals, and rental homes located in the Rolling Hills subdivision.
“There’s a fear of alienating resident smokers, but most communities that have taken the leap consider smoke-free housing an edge over the competition and have determined that there is a market for this product" according to Chip Tatum, the former Government Affairs Director for the Florida Apartment Association.
Across the state, there are more than 500 smoke-free multiunit housing properties and 73,000 smoke-free units.
For property managers and landlords, smoke-free policies can have economic benefits. More than 80% of Floridians are non-smokers. Many people who do smoke do not permit smoking in their homes. Given these numbers, many properties have very successfully marketed their smoke-free policy as an amenity, not a restriction. Smokefree policies can save money by eliminating the need to repair or replace carpeting, floors, fixtures, countertops or appliances damaged by burns or nicotine stains. At the end of a lease, smoke-free units require less turnover time due to fewer preparation and repainting needs.
Tobacco smoke can move along air ducts, through cracks in the walls and floors, through elevator shafts, and along plumbing and electrical lines affecting units that are nearby. Therefore, there are also numerous benefits for residents as tobacco smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, hundreds of which are toxic and at least 70 known to cause cancer. Exposure, even for short periods of time, can be dangerous.
“A home should be a safe place for everyone, especially for children, people with existing health conditions, and the elderly who are more vulnerable to the effects of secondhand smoke,” said Dr. Barry Hummel, co-founder of the Quit Doc Research and Education Foundation which manages the tobacco prevention program in Gilchrist County. “By making sure that residential buildings are 100 percent smoke-free, property managers are protecting tenants from the dangers of toxic smoke and from the risk of deadly smoking-related fires.”
The following are some of the reasons why it’s critical to protect tenants from exposure to secondhand smoke:
Secondhand smoke is not the only danger. Smoking-related fires are the leading cause of fire deaths in residential buildings. These fires are eight times more likely to result in death than fires that start from another source. Smoking-related fires in residential buildings result in an average of approximately 365 deaths, 925 injuries, and $326 million in property loss each year.
For more information, visit tobaccofreeflorida.com/smokefreehousing. For more information on local initiatives to promote smoke-free housing, contact Leslie Spurlock at Lspurlock@quitdoc.com.
