Let’s support Poway restaurants while protecting public health
With the County of San Diego moving to the less-restrictive Orange Tier for COVID-19, local restaurants are now open for expanded indoor and outdoor dining. As diners venture out more, a smoke-free outdoor dining policy for Poway can keep diners and restaurant staff safe while we provide much needed support to our local restaurants.
Poway is one of the few cities in San Diego County that still allows smoking and vaping on restaurant patios. In a recent public opinion poll conducted by the San Diego State University Research Foundation Institute for Public Health, the County of San Diego and the American Lung Association, 94 percent of Poway residents reported they prefer to eat in an area where smoking is not allowed. In addition, nearly half of these respondents said that if someone began smoking near them, they would ask to be re-seated.
Throughout the pandemic, the Poway City Council has taken decisive measures to protect restaurants’ abilities to serve clientele by making the outdoor dining ordinance permanent and loaning them picnic tables. Now, let’s take action to protect restaurant staff and diners from exposure to secondhand smoke. For more information, visit smokefreesandiego.org.
Dianne L. Smith
Poway
Let’s put country into “The City in the Country”
Poway is known as “The City in the Country.” We are proud of that reputation, and rightly so. Did you know that over half of the city’s 39.4 square-mile area is preserved as dedicated open space? Poway is home to over 4,700 acres of open space, 55 miles of trails and 25 parks.
That undoubtedly provides ample space for local wildlife, including insects, birds and mammals, even if it is over there, right? Well, not exactly.
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It is true that Poway’s open space, the parts which are covered with native trees and plants, not invasive species, are a boon to wildlife. These trees and plants are food sources for butterflies, moths and other insects, and contribute to the food web, on which we all depend.
The caterpillars which munch on the native plant leaves are an essential food source for birds and mammals, but sadly “over there” is not enough space and it is too disjointed to sustain them anymore. We need to create habitat where we live too, in our own backyards.
How do we do that? We plant native plants and trees which support the largest number of species of butterflies and moths. Go to nwf.org/nativeplantfinder/plants to find out which trees, shrubs, flowers and grasses provide the biggest impact. Bring nature home to Poway!
Donna Payton
Poway