Banning smoking downtown would be an attack on the homeless and a waste of time for city police, who ought to be dealing with real crime, said Elorza.
In his veto message, Elorza said, while this “`ordinance is ostensibly about smoking, its true target is the homeless community. Homelessness is a serious problem in Providence, just as it is in cities across the country. As you are aware, the causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and include substance abuse, mental illness and, of course, economic challenges.”’
The mayor went on to say in his veto message to the city council that the city has taken a number of initiatives to combat homelessness, including working with such agencies as Amos House, House of Hope, Crossroads and the Providence Center.
Elorza, who is not a smoker, also said enforcing a downtown smoking ban would be distract law-enforcement resources, which are put to better use in battling the open-air drug dealing that has plagued Burnside Park and Kennedy Plaza in recent years.
“`We have a finite amount of police resources and it is a waste of their time to have them focus on people who are smoking,”’ said Elorza. “`We have been successful in reducing crime city-wide in the past couple of years and I believe our officers should be focused on serious crime, not criminalizing poverty.”
He also said, “I do not believe that ticketing tourists and visitors who accidentally walk on the wrong sidewalk is in the city’s best interest.”
