Published: March 25, 2008 09:15 pm      

Officials approve proposal to make Bowen Field tobacco-free

BLUEFIELD — Bluefield’s Bowen Field will soon be a tobacco-free facility.

“Officially, we’ve been in discussions with the ballpark for a couple of years about going tobacco-free,” Community Connections Executive Director Greg Puckett said. “We’ve done surveys of the participants at games as recently as last year asking for their preference. The general consensus, as well as the Division of Tobacco Prevention, is we should be working on tobacco free parks and recreational facilities.”

Puckett said late Tuesday evening that the measure had been passed by the city Board of Directors. Board member Ron Crabtree made the motion to accept the proposal and board member Mary Frances Brammer seconded it.

Puckett said a tobacco-free park would create a cleaner, safer and family-friendly environment. Puckett said Hunnicutt Stadium in Princeton is already tobacco-free.

“Creating a tobacco-free environment would be more fan friendly and would compliment other ballparks and the rules and regulations of Minor League Baseball,” Puckett said. “One of the things we discussed is it is illegal for the players to use tobacco on the field, but it is a double standard. Because we are allowed to use it on the stands.”

Puckett said the proposed tobacco ban applies to cigarettes, spit tobacco and all other forms of tobacco products.

Puckett said officials proposed a tobacco ban at the ballpark several years ago, but didn’t pursue the idea because of the ongoing clean-indoor air discussions for Mercer County at the time.

“Other ballparks across the country — whether Minor League or Major League — are falling in line,” Puckett said. “I point directly to Yankee Stadium, which is a tobacco-free stadium.”

Under the proposed ban, Puckett said those who smoke or spit chew tobacco would be excused from the ballpark.

“A lot of it is self reporting,” Puckett said of the enforcement of the proposed tobacco ban. “When you implement a policy like this — it is self reporting. Because people are responsible, and feel an obligation to obey the rules. We will simply ask them to remove themselves from the park.”

Puckett said the regional tobacco prevention group, along with the Creating Opportunities for Youth Coalition, will provide all of the smoke and tobacco-free signs that would have to be installed at the park.

Puckett said spit tobacco can also create health hazards for those who must clean-up the field and the stadium after a game.

“During clean-up, the blood-borne pathogens can still infiltrate the skin of the cleaners,” Puckett said. “So we are still dealing with that. Plus it gets back to the rules. We are telling everyone it is harmful. We don’t allow our Minor League players to use it anywhere in the system. Yet, we are setting up in the stands proving to be a bad example to the players.”

— Contact Charles Owens at cowens@bdtonline.com