Chippewa Co Health Department Tobacco-Free Projects Coordinator

NEWS RELEASE

TO: Eastern U.P. Media Network

FROM: Julie K.O. Trotter Chippewa Co Health Department Tobacco-Free Projects Coordinator Chippewa County Tobacco-Free Living Coalition Coordinator

Jim Bergman, Co-Director of the Center for Social Gerontology/Smoke-free Environments Law Project.

SUBJECT: End of Year Heralds Record Numbers of Smoke-Free Apartments in Michigan & the Nation

CONTACT: Julie K.O. Trotter, 635-3636 Jim Bergman, 734 665 1126

DATE: December 18, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

"As 2008 comes to a close, we are delighted that hundreds of thousands of apartments all across Michigan are now totally smoke-free" according to Jim Bergman, Co-Director of The Center for Social Gerontology, Inc. in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which operates the Smoke-Free Environments Law Project (SFELP). "In 2004 when the MI Smoke-Free Apartment Initiative began as a collaborative effort of the SFELP and 10 local health departments covering 19 counties, it was almost impossible to find apartments that had smoke-free or no-smoking policies. In four short years, smoke-free apartments now abound and are the clear trend."

"Smoke-free multi-unit housing is fast-becoming the "hot" new amenity in Michigan rental housing. Hundreds of thousands of market-rate rental housing units are now covered by no-smoking policies. Well over 15,000 units of "affordable" housing are also smoke-free. And, 28 public housing commissions in Michigan have smoke-free policies for some or all their buildings, covering over 3,500 units," said Bergman.

Many of those apartments can be located by going to SFELP"s MISmokeFreeApartment.org listing at http://www.MISmokeFreeApartment.org/listing.html The Sault Ste. Marie roster currently lists 25 smoke-free housing options for people seeking a healthy environment to live. The listing consists of small multi unit dwellings in addition a portion of the housing offered by the Sault Housing Commission and Harwood Properties, Inc. and all of Ashmun Creek Apartments.

Smoke-Free Apartments Are a Trend in Michigan and Nationally

While Michigan is one of the pace-setters in the nation in the realm of smoke-free multi-unit housing, this is a national trend, as well. Both the National Apartment Association and the National Multi- Housing Council have highlighted smoke-free housing as a growing movement and have told their members that smoke-free policies are good for business as well as health. Dave Watkins, former Chairman of the Board of the National Apartment Association, is quoted in the December, 2007 issue of UNITS magazine as saying "Smoke-free apartment communities not only promote a healthy resident population, but also a healthy bottom line for owners and investors." The cover, feature section of the December UNITS magazine is on "Clearing the Air: Industry Discusses Trend Toward Smoke-Free Housing ", in which the editors introduce this feature by stating: "In this new era, many owners and managers are choosing not to ignore the problems that can result from a smoke-friendly community. They are finding that keeping the smoke out is the best way to retain both residents and profits."

Over 100 Public Housing Authorities Nationwide Smoke-Free; 600% Increase in 4 Years

"As 2008 ends, there are now at least 102 local public housing authorities in the United States with smoke-free policies for some or all their apartment buildings," said Bergman. "Of the 102 local housing authorities that adopted smoke-free policies, about 85 were adopted since the beginning of January, 2005; an average of about 1.8 per month. That constitutes an increase in the number of housing authorities with smoke-free policies of 600% in 4 years."

Public housing authorities with smoke-free policies exist in 17 states, as follows: Michigan (28), Minnesota (19), Maine (18), California (7), Nebraska (6), Colorado (6), Washington (4), New Hampshire (3), Oregon (2), New Jersey (2), Wisconsin, Florida, Idaho, Montana, Indiana, Kentucky, and Alaska. Access a listing at http://www.tcsg.org/sfelp/SFHousingAuthorities.pdf

The Sault Ste. Marie Housing Commission was the first housing commission in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and 9th in the State to adopt a 100% smoke-free policy for three apartment buildings for the elderly and disabled in December 2006.

Apartment Owners Know Its Legal & Cost-Efficient to be Smoke-Free

Until the MISmokeFreeApartment initiative began in mid-2004, most apartment owners in Michigan thought it was against the law to make their apartment buildings smoke-free and include no-smoking clauses in their rental leases. Once owners realized it was legal to make their apartments totally smoke-free, and that a smoke-free policy provided health, safety and financial benefits, they began to transition their buildings to smoke-free status.

According to the 2006 Surgeon General’s report, the home is the place where children are most exposed to secondhand smoke and it is a major location of secondhand smoke exposure for adults. Breathing any amount of secondhand smoke is harmful to smokers and nonsmokers alike. Secondhand smoke is a serious health danger that causes heart disease, lung cancer and respiratory illnesses and it is consistently linked to a significant increase in both heart disease and lung cancer risks among adults. Eliminating smoking is the only way to fully protect people from exposure to secondhand smoke.

Regarding financial burdens, apartment owners understand the high maintenance and replacement costs associated with having units where smoking is allowed, resulting in nicotine and tar-stained walls, cigarette burn marks, and carpets and upholstery that are permeated with tobacco smoke. They also know the dangers of cigarette-caused fires. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, a division of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), smoking is the number one cause of preventable home fire deaths across the country. A lit cigarette accidentally dropped onto a chair or bed can cause a large fire in minutes. “A smoke-free policy can dramatically reduce maintenance and replacement costs,” said Julie Trotter, Chippewa County Health Department Tobacco-Free Projects Coordinator. "This cost savings can be well over $2,000 to $8,000 per unit. Furthermore, the nonsmoking rate for the adult population in Michigan is now almost 80%, which makes the market niche for smoke-free apartments enormous."

Surveys Show Residents Want Smoke-Free Apartments

Resident surveys by Michigan apartment owners reflect what surveys in Minnesota, California, Maine and elsewhere have found: a sizeable majority of apartment residents greatly prefer smoke-free apartment buildings. At least 75% to 80% of residents in most apartments surveyed say they want smoke-free housing, and over half say they have moved or would move if secondhand tobacco smoke seeped into their unit from adjoining units.

According to the Michigan Adult Tobacco Survey, in 2005 over 80% of households surveyed said they had a smoke-free policy in their own home; that percentage is increasing yearly. Apartment residents are saying that they don"t want their smoke-free home/unit inundated with their neighbor"s secondhand smoke. And, many smokers feel the same way and take their smoking outside to protect their families and their furniture.

The Trend is Clear: Smoke-Free Multi-Unit Housing is Becoming the Norm

Bergman concluded by saying: "No one could have predicted the enormous growth in smoke-free multi-unit buildings that we"ve witnessed in 2007 and 2008. The trend is clear, smoke-free multi-unit housing is fast becoming the norm in Michigan and other parts of the nation. Whether its market-rate, affordable or public housing, smoke-free is the hot new amenity that owners and residents want."

For more information about the smoke-free apartment initiative, please call the Chippewa County Health Department/Tobacco-Free Living Coalition at 906 635 3636. To access the MISmokeFreeApartment web site to learn more, go to http://www.mismokefreeapartment.org To access the Michigan smoke-free apartment listing directly, go to http://www.mismokefreeapartment.org/listing.html For more on smoke-free apartments, go to the SFELP "Apartments" site at http://www.tcsg.org/sfelp/apartment.htm which also has links to related sites. For help in quitting tobacco use, please call the Michigan Tobacco Quit Line at 1800 480 QUIT (7848)

The MI Smoke-Free Apartment Initiative is a partnership of local health departments, the Tobacco Section of the Michigan Department of Community Health, and the Smoke-Free Environments Law Project of The Center for Social Gerontology, Inc.

------Photo: Ashmun Creek Apartments are one of 20 plus smoke-free housing options in Sault Ste. Marie. All six apartment buildings, the newly built office complex, and outdoor areas within 30 feet of the buildings are 100% smoke-free.