Hempstead Town installs new signs for ban on vaping in parks

Hempstead Town officials have installed new signs at town parks reminding visitors that vaping is prohibited at the locations, according to a news release.

Smoking, including vaping with e-cigarettes, has been banned at town parks since 2010, but the signage had only stated “smoking prohibited,” according to the release.

The signs now state, “smoking, vaping or use of any tobacco product strictly prohibited in this park,” according to a photo of a sign.

Councilman Dennis Dunne has also convened a task force to study e-cigarette and vaping use in the town. Dunne and Councilwoman Erin King Sweeney unveiled the new signs on Thursday.

In January, the town board unanimously passed a law that restricted hookah lounges in the town’s unincorporated areas to light manufacturing and industrial zones. The legislation also limits the sale of some substances sold in vape shops in unincorporated areas, such as Juul e-cigarettes and kratom vaping devices.

While Republicans Dunne and King Sweeney took credit for having the signs installed, Mike Fricchione, the town’s press secretary, who usually speaks for Democratic Supervisor Laura Gillen, said the law needs further clarification because it does not expressly prohibit vaping.

The 2010 law states: “No person shall smoke or carry any lighted smoking substances, including but not limited to cigarettes, cigars, pipes and the like, at any park within the Town of Hempstead, except in designated smoking areas as indicated by posted signs.”