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Smoking rooms may be added to
PTC ordinance

Alcan Packaging wants to keep its separate room for smokers

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

A Peachtree City company that spent over $100,000 to build its own separately-ventilated break room just for smokers will likely get an exception from the city’s indoor smoking ban.

The City Council voted unanimously Thursday to have city staff prepare an amendment to the smoking ordinance which would outline requirements for indoor smoking rooms.

Alcan Packaging, which produces packaging for tobacco, food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical products, built the room at its plant last year, said Ron Syrkos, Alcan vice president and general manager.

Previously, the company’s cafeteria had separate seating for smokers and non-smokers, “separated by an imaginary line,” he said.

“We had to do something about that,” Syrkos said.

The amendment to the indoor smoking ordinance will likely use requirements from the mechanical code used by the city with some possible tweaking by the council.

The mechanical code requirements include the smoking room being fully enclosed with the negative air pressure that keeps the smoke from filtering out, and the use of a separate ventilation system, said City Manager Bernie McMullen. He also said that businesses could be required to test their smoking room to make sure the proper airflow is being met.

A city study of Alcan’s smoking room showed that it met the mechanical code guidelines, McMullen said.

Syrkos told council he was in concurrence with the suggested guidelines, which would appear to allow his company’s smoking room to remain in use.

Syrkos said the smoking room has kept his employees happy, and that’s important because the company spends a lot of money on employee training and thus employee retention is important.

Councilman Steve Rapson said the main reason smoking rooms weren’t written into the original indoor smoking ordinance is that council didn’t want businesses to be required to put them in.

Mayor Steve Brown noted that many businesses have used gazebos and other features to create outdoor smoking areas for their employees and customers.

“I have a bit of a problem sending somebody outside when it is 30 degrees cold and raining,” Syrkos said.

“I have a little problem with second-hand smoke affecting people who don’t smoke,” replied Councilman Murray Weed.

Brown added that the city council was unaware that Alcan had built its own smoking room.

Alcan Packaging’s local facility, in the city’s industrial park, has sales of about $70 million a year and has roughly 170 employees, Syrkos said.

Councilwoman Judi-ann Rutherford commended Syrkos for installing the smoking room to protect his employees.

“It shows you do value your employees,” Rutherford said.

In his original letter to Mayor Brown about Alcan’s smoking room, Syrkos noted that smoking was banned in all public places in the building but was allowed in some private offices. After he was questioned about it Thursday night, Syrkos agreed that practice would have to cease to stay within the boundaries of the city’s indoor smoking ordinance.

Syrkos said no one was required to enter any of the offices where smoking took place, and smoking was forbidden in meeting rooms and other areas of the plant.