It's no secret that secondhand smoke is harmful. The dangers of secondhand cigarette smoke are so great that a ban on smoking for all work places, offices, restaurants and bars has been in place in Massachusetts since 2004.
In collaboration with the Boston Public Health Commission's (BPHC) Division of Healthy Homes and Community Supports, Let's Get Healthy Boston! (LGHB) has gained ground on transforming the landscape of smoke-free housing in Boston. In our first year (September 2014-2015), three Community Development Corporation (CDC), two management companies and 15 private landlords transitioned 3,800 units with almost 10,000 residents, to smoke free.
Congratulations to the following partners that either have completed their transition portfolio-wide or are in the process of transitioning all their buildings to smoke-free for the health of their residents:
- Beacon Communities
- Tenants' Development Corporation
- Dorchester Bay Economic Development Corporation
- Asian CDC
- Codman Square CDC
- East Boston NOAH
- Urban Edge
- Madison Park
- Peabody Properties
- Maloney Properties, Inc.
- United Housing
- Metro Management
- Jamaicaway Towers & Townhouses
- Trinity Management
LGHB is currently working with 20 additional partners, including community development corporations, large management companies and private landlords, to help more residential buildings go smoke-free. BPHC promotes voluntary implementation of smoke free housing policies and provides free training and technical assistance to property owners and managers on transition and implementation of smoke free policies based on best practices.
Smoke-free housing training for United Housing Management staff.
LGHB's Healthy Community Champions, neighborhood residents who engage in education and advocacy for healthier neighborhoods, have also joined the smoke- free housing effort. Approximately 26 Champions from Allston/Brighton, Charlestown, East Boston, Mattapan, Mission Hill, Dorchester, Roxbury, South Boston and the South End have been trained to engage landlords in their neighborhoods about the benefits of smoke-free housing and are involved in public process discussions to support smoke-free housing throughout Boston.
Are you interested in your multi-unit building becoming smoke free? Or do you know landlords or property managers who have not yet made the transition to smoke free and can benefit from our training and technical assistance?
If so please contact Eugene Barros at 617-534-2670 or ebarros@bphc.org.
Or are you a tenant wondering how to find a smoke-free apartment in Boston? The simplest approach is to ask your prospective landlord or property manager if they have transitioned to smoke free. In the coming months, two city agencies, the Inspectional Services Department and the Office of Fair Housing and Equity, will be adding public access to their housing databases that ask landlords to indicate their building policies about smoking.