Signal Hill, Long Beach Consider E-Cig Smoking Bans

The president of a local homeowners association wants the city to ban e-cig smoking at private apartments and condominiums, even though state law allows homeowners associations and landlords to have their own smoking bans.

Duane Lagese, president of the Northview Homeowners Association, submitted a request last November asking for a citywide ordinance banning e-cig smoking and second-hand smoke in multi residential properties.

City staff, however, will present the council with a series of options, including a city-initiated outreach campaign to educate associations and landlords of their rights to restrict smoking under state law, neighbors individually creating voluntary agreements to limit smoking areas and the city adopting an ordinance restricting smoking in some or all multi unit housing.

“State law already allows homeowners associations and landlords to have their own smoking bans. So it’s a policy question,” said Scott Charney, the city’s director of community development. “Does the council want to pass something sweeping or let the homeowners associations do it for themselves?”

The council also will consider a variety of options regarding e-cigarettes or vaping, including:

• Initiating an outreach program to advise the public on the health and safety concerns associated with e-cigarette use and secondary exposure;

• Passing an ordinance treating the sale of e-cigarette products the same as tobacco;

• Continuing to prevent vaping lounges, and

• Adopting an ordinance prohibiting the sale of e-cigarettes.

Also on the agenda, single-family residential customers of Signal Hill Waste and Recycling Services might see a 38-cent monthly increase on their bills, to $14.38. EDCO wants to raise solid waste collection rates to help cover the increased disposal costs it has to pay.

Potential monthly rate increases for multifamily and commercial customers would depend on the number of trash and recycling carts, the size of the bins and the frequency of weekly collections.

These potential rates are subject to a public hearing, and notices of the proposed increase and public hearing will be mailed to residents, as required by state law.

The notices, which also mention the Sept. 2 public hearing date, should be mailed by Thursday, according to the staff report.

Residents will have a chance to protest, in writing, the proposed increases. If a majority of residents oppose them, they would be rejected. But, if a majority of residents haven’t objected by the public hearing date, the council is expected to approve them.

EDCO will pay the costs associated with having the public hearing, including printing, postage and other costs.

If the proposed rate increase is approved, Signal Hill will have one of the lowest residential rates in the area.

Here’s a comparison to other cities:

• Bellflower, $18.23

• Cerritos, $17.01

• Downey, $17.31

• Lakewood, $19.04

• Long Beach, $23.49

• Paramount $16.95