4th Anniversary of Local Smoking Bans
I can understand that the ‘Good News Friday’ topic for today might be a matter of viewpoint, but it’s my blog and I think it is good news. Four years ago clean air/smoking bans in St. Louis City & County became effective. This has allowed me to visit places that I’d previously considered off-limits, such as:
The St. Louis exemption for small bars will expire in just one year, on Saturday January 2, 2016 establishments that had been granted exemptions to continue allowing smoking will no longer be exempt. Will they be ready or will they be surprised at how quickly five years has passed by? No doubt some will squander the next 12 months but hopefully others are completing patios and such.
Casinos in the city & county, unfortunately, remain exempt. Other Missouri counties in the region aren’t yet smoke-free. The entire state of Illinois is smoke-free, including casinos.
— Steve Patterson
I thought the smoking ban there was statewide. . .
Illinois has a statewide ban, in Missouri it’s left up to each jurisdiction – many establishments in St. Charles & Jefferson Counties still allow smoking. Some municipalities may have banned smoking in those counties.