Smoke-free housing campaign to start

    A movement towards smoke-free multiunit housing is growing state- and nationwide as landlords learn of the financial and health benefits of a smoke-free apartment.
    The trend toward smoke-free housing, which began in Maine back in early 2004 when Auburn Housing Authority became the first housing authority in the state to adopt a policy, has grown exponentially in Maine. Today, more than 40 percent of Maine’s apartment buildings and 72 percent of housing authorities are smoke-free. Policies vary, from prohibiting smoking exclusively inside the building, to specifying smoke free areas within a designated distance from entry ways, vents, and windows, to maintaining 100% smoke-free properties and grounds.
    Implementation of a smoke-free policy can save landlords and property management companies hundreds, even thousands of dollars a year. “For a single unit, landlords can save two to six times on the turnover of the apartment,” said Amy Olfene, coordinator for the Smoke-Free Housing Coalition of Maine, a non-profit group working to protect residents in multiunit housing from involuntary exposure to secondhand smoke. “Between additional cleaning, paint, and repairs needed to turn over a unit where smoking has been allowed, landlords can spend $500 to $3,000 more than if smoking were prohibited in the unit.”
    In addition, smoking-related fires are the number-one cause of residential fire-related deaths, not only in Maine, but the nation as a whole. In April 2008, the State Fire Marshal’s Office issued a plea to landlords and housing professionals to go smoke-free.
    “The Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office encourages housing authorities and other multiunit properties in Maine to weigh all the benefits a smoke-free policy will deliver in addition to reducing the probability of deaths, injuries, and property loss associated with smoking related fires,” according to Fire Marshal John Dean. “By adopting such a policy in multiple dwelling structures, we will not only diminish the likelihood of an individual being killed or injured, but also the chances of a catastrophic multiple fatality fire from occurring as well,” he added.
    Coalition members point out that it is important to remember that smoke-free policies are about the smoke, not the smoker. “Smoke-free policies are about protecting the health of the residents and the value and safety of the property. Nearly 80 percent of tenants, smokers and non-smokers alike, want to live in a smoke-free environment. Everyone, from tenant to landlord, benefits when a smoke-free policy is implemented in a multiunit building,” explained Olfene.
    The Smoke-Free Housing Coalition of Mßaine is now expanding its outreach efforts to northern and Downeast Maine in order to assist landlords with information and support in adopting a smoke-free policy. “We believe smoke-free housing exists in these areas and landlords are interested in the prospect of adopting this money-saving policy,” said Coalition Chair, Tina Pettingill. “The Coalition is reaching out to landlords in northern and Downeast Maine to ensure awareness that such policies are legal, justified and highly marketable.”
    The outreach campaign in northern and Downeast Maine, including Aroostook County, the Northern Penquis region and Washington County, will include newspaper advertisements and a postcard mailing to each landlord in the region. Local Healthy Maine Partnerships in each area will help coordinate technical assistance for local landlords and guide tenants to apartments listed as smoke-free.
    “With this campaign, it is our goal to help landlords and housing professionals in northern and Downeast Maine to implement smoke-free housing policies that not only save money, but lives as well,” stated Pettingill. For landlords with existing smoke-free buildings, and prospective tenants, the Coalition maintains a free online registry containing smoke-free apartments available in Maine on their website at www.smokefreeforme.org.
    Those interested in learning  about going smoke-free, or listing a smoke-free building on the Coalition’s free online registry, are encouraged to visit www.smokefreeforme.org. For  information on smoke-free housing, contact Martha Bell, at 207-532-5314.