Norwich — Businessman and newly endorsed school board candidate Swarnjit Singh was pleased that thousands of people came to Norwich for the July 3 fireworks, but he was disappointed to see families shifting position and moving around at the Howard T. Brown Memorial Park because someone nearby started smoking.

Some families vacated prime viewing spots at the waterfront park to find other locations, such as the parking lot of Christ Church, to avoid cigarette smoke.

Singh and members of a new group, Norwich Green Initiative, several of them members of the Norwich Board of Education, signed a letter to Mayor Peter Nystrom and the City Council. The letter asks that the city establish smoke-free areas in public parks, including establishing a 25-foot radius around covered pavilions and prominent public gathering places, “where people can sit, enjoy and children can play at various public places.”

Singh met with Nystrom to discuss the proposal Thursday and called it a positive first step. Nystrom invited him to present the idea at the council’s Public Works Committee meeting Aug. 19.

Nystrom on Friday called it “a simple request.” He said the city already prohibits smoking at the Spaulding Pond Beach in Mohegan Park and immediately outside the main entrance at City Hall. He said the city Public Works Department could assist in erecting signs if the city were to create the smoke-free zones.

Singh said having the zones could reduce tensions among event attendees, as families would feel “empowered” to ask someone to move outside the nonsmoking zones, and families would know they would have a comfortable smoke-free zone at events.

The Norwich Green Initiative has more than smoke-free parks on its agenda. Singh also raised the idea of creating electric car rapid-charging stations and suggested the city should increase its fleet of electric cars as prices drop and the vehicles become more readily available, perhaps adding one to the police cruiser fleet.

He also suggested Norwich could consider banning single-use plastic grocery bags, which are being phased out by state law, first with a tax on the bags starting Aug. 1 followed by a ban in 2021. He said Norwich could ban the bags ahead of the state law and become a model community.

Singh also raised the idea at Monday’s Norwich Area Clergy Association meeting that Norwich Green Initiative could assist the Norwich Interfaith Food Pantry with a drive to seek donations of reusable grocery bags for pantry patrons.

Mary Elizabeth Lang, co-manager of the Norwich Interfaith Food Pantry, located at Christ Episcopal Church, 78 Washington St., said the food pantry serves about 19 families per week but last month provided food to 165 different individuals.

The problem and need for reusable bags were discussed at Monday’s meeting. Many food pantry patrons walk, so pantry workers double-bag the food. Paper bags are not reliable, because of weather, and many food recipients would find the bag tax burdensome and could not afford to purchase the reusable bags sold at various supermarkets.

Donations of clean, reusable bags can be dropped off during church hours at Christ Episcopal Church, 78 Washington St., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. If someone can’t make it during those hours, contact Lang by email at maryelizabethlang@yahoo.com to arrange a drop-off time.

c.bessette@theday.com