By TRICIA NEAL, CJ Staff Writer
Got an opinion about smoking in Somerset?
Whether you support an all-out ban or believe in smokers’ rights, your chance to speak out is coming.
Dr. Al Perkins, president of the Pulaski County Medical Society and spokesman for the Pulaski County Smoke Free Coalition, has approached the City of Somerset for help in supporting a city-wide smoking ban.
The Pulaski County Smoke Free Coalition has already sought help from the Lake Cumberland District Health Department and the Pulaski County Fiscal Court, but, so far, no governmental moves have been made to regulate smoking in the county.
Several establishments — from government buildings to restaurants, and from the local hospital to small businesses — have voluntarily enacted smoking bans, however.
Somerset Mayor Eddie Girdler and several council members acknowledged concerns about enacting a smoking ban in the city limits when county establishments could continue to allow smoking.
“If the county doesn’t go smoke-free, would it put some (businesses) at a disadvantage?” Girdler wondered.
“If the county is not going to participate, we need to see how that impacts city businesses.”
Mayor Girdler is planning a public forum which would allow citizens, business owners, city council members, fiscal court members and local experts to express their views about the possibility of a smoking ban.
The forum would allow the public to “get all the issues out on the table,” Girdler said.
Girdler hopes to hold the forum in mid-August, possibly at the Rocky Hollow Recreational Center.
He said those who are unable to attend will be able to submit written comments expressing their views.
More details will be published when information is available.
