The Oberlin Review
<< Front page News February 18, 2005

Keep closes smoking lounge after complaints
Smoked out: Oberlin's last indoor smoking lounge falls by the wayside.
 

The Keep smoking lounge was a haven for the nicotine-addicted in these brutal winter months, an alternative to huddling outdoors, fighting off the cold with their cigarettes. Now that the lounge has been shut down, however, they will be forced to brave the frigid air.

“The Keep smoking lounge was actually an illegal smoking lounge. ResLife didn’t know it was still open until recently,” said Kevin Williams, assistant dean of students/assistant director of residential life. It was first brought to ResLife’s attention when campus security smelled the smoke coming from the lounge while passing by.

According to Keep resident junior Nate Anderson, the lounge’s closing was Keep’s choice.

“A bunch of first-years would come in at noon during the week and smoke weed in there,” he said. “No one from Keep really used the lounge.”

He went on to explain that because the smoking lounge was right next to the bike co-op, problems arose. The bike co-op does a lot of activities with younger children, some of whom are enrolled in correctional schools. The smell of marijuana was becoming a problem.

The smoking lounge, which has now been transformed into storage for the bike co-op, was not always so taboo. Until the 2003-2004 school year, smoking lounges were allowed in the dorms. That year, they were voted down. The previous year, both Langston and East halls still had smoking lounges.

“The smoking lounges had a lot of issues with vandalism,” said Williams. “Things would get burned.”

Marijuana smoking in the lounges was not one of the reasons he noted for the closing of smoking lounges.

“It also was a health issue, and also an issue of accommodating all the students,” Williams said.

Smoker Santiago Stocker a junior who can remember the time when smoking lounges were available, does not agree with the “no smoking indoors” edict.

“It’s cold and smokers need a place to go,” said Stocker, lamenting the close of Keep.

Rachele O’Hare, a first-year at Keep, also feels the absence of the smoking lounge.

“I didn’t like that there were shady people using the lounge, but in general I thought it was cool,” she said.