The Great Neck Park District approved a resolution during their Thursday evening meeting last week that made the entire park district smoking free.
Passed unanimously, the park district will begin putting up signs within 30 days.
As discussed during their Sept. 27 meeting, smoking restrictions have been enhanced in the park district over the past few years to include all playgrounds, Steppingstone Park, the entire Parkwood Complex and Great Neck House.
In response to repeated requests from residents, park district board members said they felt it necessary to pass a resolution, which is now backed by an ordinance, to extend the ban on all park district land.
The enforcement for smoking activity, should it occur on park district grounds, will be done by employees.
“Should it be necessary, we can have police enforcement, which would then include a fine,” said park district Commissioner Robert Lincoln Jr.
As the resolution passed, another issue was brought up involving staff with the park district that smokes.
“We can’t tell our residents they can’t smoke, and then allow our staff to smoke,” park district Commissioner Ruth Tamarin said.
The park district plans to inform their staff at an upcoming meeting of the changes.
“We’re doing this for their own health,” park district Commissioner Daniel Nachmanoff.
The park district is comprised of all Great Neck Villages and unincorporated areas with the exception of Great Neck Estates, Harbor Hills, Lake Success, Saddle Rock and University Gardens.
While on the subject of regulations within the park district, Nachmanoff brought up his recent observations of multiple cars parked in the commuter parking fields without the required parking sticker.
“Those parking lots, first and foremost, belong to the park district,” Nachmanoff said.
As a reminder, the park district urged residents to visit the Great Neck House and obtain a parking sticker, which is free. As a fair warning, Lincoln said the district will first place warnings on vehicles without stickers for a few weeks, and then begin issuing tickets.
For more information, Lincoln asked residents to to visit greatneckparks.org and observe the parking regulations.
The park district also announced a letter received from the Great Neck Historical Society, in which they are “looking to archive historical information about out community,” Lincoln said. This will include old deeds, maps, surveys and other relevant historical information that can be made available to the public for purposes such as research.
The park district was amenable to the idea, especially as Tamarin recalled strenuous research for the 100th anniversary of the Great Neck House, and with the upcoming 100th anniversary of the park district in 2016.
After the meeting, president of the Great Neck Historical Society Alice Kasten shared that over 50 letters were sent out to organizations that they feel would have historical documents. “When we receive responses, we’re going to compile them, and then put the results up in the Great Neck Library,” Kasten said.
Tentative plans of a show-and-tell event at the library sometime in April are also being discussed.
