Jump to full article: St. Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch, 2009-11-11
Author: Mark Schlinkmann St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Intro: Mayors Patti York of St. Charles and Pam Fogarty of Dardenne Prairie want St. Charles County voters to decide whether smoking should be banned in restaurants and other public places across the county.
The two city leaders weighed in on the issue in separate interviews on their reaction to the successful push in last week’s election for a smoking ban in St. Louis County.
“I think it was the right way to do it, take it to the public,” York said. ”In just a matter of time, we’ll all be smoke-free. It will be one by one, watching the pins drop.”
Last year, when a St. Charles city panel on health issues made an unsuccessful proposal for a smoking ban limited to her city, York said she preferred that the issue instead be addressed on a statewide basis by the Legislature.
Now that St. Louis County has acted, York said, it makes sense for St. Charles County to vote as well.
To ensure that businesses in St. Charles County aren’t at a disadvantage, York said, any ballot proposal should contain the same exemptions that St. Louis County adopted. Among the exemptions to the smoking ban there are casino gambling floors and bars that derive 25 percent or less of their income from food or other non-liquor items.
Jump to full article » |