Wrightsville Beach town officials will hold a public hearing Thursday to discuss instituting a smoking ban on the beach strand – and they're expecting a crowd.
The meeting, which will be held at 6 p.m. in the town's Public Safety Building to accommodate for numbers, will be a forum for supporters and opponents to air their opinions and to listen to the board's thoughts on the ban.
If passed, Wrightsville Beach would be the first beach in North Carolina to adopt the ban, joining the likes of Surfside Beach and Atlantic Beach in South Carolina.
In 2010, the Board of Aldermen voted down the ban 3-2. Board members were reluctant to pass the ban because of questions about how to enforce it.
Enforcement continues to be a point of contention. Town Manager Bob Simpson said whenever a town creates an ordinance it needs to be able to enforce it.
"As soon as you create an ordinance with a fine associated with it, which this would, it is expected to be enforced," he said. "So it puts us and law enforcement in a bad position."
Supporters of the ban say signage, peer pressure and overall awareness will be enough to enforce the ban, believing it would not require extra efforts by law enforcement. Sean Ahlum, chairman of the Cape Fear chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, said peer pressure works.
"In Santa Monica, Calif., which is a smoke-free beach, police just casually mention (the ordinance) to someone who is smoking, and they put it out," Ahlum said. "Most people want to follow the rules."
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