Smoking

Landlords in California will have clear authority to ban smoking in apartment buildings under a measure signed Wednesday by Gov. Jerry Brown. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) authored the legislation, which takes effect Jan. 1, in response to concerns that the law was murky on whether smoking can be banned in apartments. Under SB 332, landlords must notify tenants where smoking is prohibited in an apartment complex, including whether it is banned in specific apartments.  L.A. TIMES

As a citizen of Glendale, I am just wondering if loitering, smoking and littering laws are in fact still laws within the city. On any given day or night (mostly night), you can find groups of teens and young adults hanging around in parking lots all across the city. They play their music, smoke cigarettes and throw all their trash right where they stand. They try to intimidate others and make the parking lots very uncomfortable places to be. The parking lots next to Carl's Jr. on Glenoaks, the 7-Eleven on the corner of Glenoaks and Highland and the Ralphs parking lot on Glendale Avenue near Glendale Community College are just a few of the hot spots.

Glendale's Fresh Air Ordinance (via the Neighborhood Services Division of the Community Planning Department) is a thoughtful attempt to protect nonsmokers from the toxic effects of residual cigarette smoke in “common areas” of the city - including common areas of apartment buildings. It would be wonderful if all smokers in the city obeyed that law. But they don't. What happens when a nonsmoker puts in a complaint about free-for-all smoking in their building? Once Neighborhood Services places no-smoking signs that are ignored, and sends enforcement officers out to talk to noncompliant smokers whose behavior remains unchanged … then what?

The San Gabriel Mountains are clearly on the mend from the devastation of the Station fire, with flora and fauna coming back and areas reopened for public use. But as the two-year anniversary of the fire arrives, some important matters remain untended, leaving the region more at risk from inevitable future wildfires than it need be. The mystery of who started the Station fire remains unsolved, but that may not be the most pressing question....

Attempts to change city rules for hookah lounges to operate legally in Glendale went up in smoke Tuesday night as the City Council decided to stick with the status quo. That means businesses that sell hookah - currently there are two that city officials say they are aware of - will be getting notices of violations. If they don't nix their illegal hookah activities, the city can take them to court, which could lead to jail time or fines, said Neighborhood Services Administrator Sam Engel.

Californians are kicking the habit. The rate of adult smoking has dropped sharply over the last two decades, reaching its lowest level on record, largely because of aggressive tobacco control campaigns by state and local governments, officials said. Last year, 11.9% of Californians said they smoked, down from 25.9% in 1984, the earliest data available, according to the California Department of Public Health. Only one other state had a lower smoking rate last year: Utah with 9.1%.

GLENDALE — With a four-run lead and just six outs left to record, the Crescenta Valley 9-10 Softball All-Stars could all but taste victory. But the end result on Saturday afternoon wasn't so sweet for the local squad. A pair of error-fueled rallies by South El Monte tied the game and sent it to extra innings, where Crescenta Valley saw its run in the Southern California State Championships Tournament ended by a 9-7 loss in the seventh at Ribbons Little League Field in Victorville.

The rate of smoking in the greater Glendale area has dropped to below 10%, according to a new study released this week. The Glendale Community Needs Assessment, required by law every three years, identifies health trends to help Glendale Adventist Medical Center, Glendale Memorial Hospital, Verdugo Hills Hospital and nearly two dozen healthcare and social service agencies better tailor their services to local needs. Many of the main service providers comprise the Glendale Healthier Communities Coalition, which heard the report on Tuesday.

A leading cause of preventable death in United States has unfortunately become an addicting habit for many people all over the nation. This extremely harmful habit is smoking tobacco, known as cigarettes. Smoking causes many health problems, such as emphysema, heart disease, and cancer, as well as emotional and physical consequences such as change in voice, pigmentation change in teeth and bad breath. Even though throughout the years people have become more aware of the harmful effects that smoking causes, it seems as though it is just not enough and more needs to be done in order to save lives and shape the upcoming generations into a healthier and more knowledgeable society.

Glendale Community College police have issued 79 warnings and six cigarette-related littering tickets since they began enforcing a new campus smoking policy in March, officials said. The college Board of Trustees in August adopted the guidelines that limit smoking to seven designated areas along the perimeter of campus in an effort to curb secondhand smoke and to reduce the amount of cigarette butts and ashes on campus. The new policy also moves the college closer to city law, which bans smoking in most public spaces.