GF Council passes smoking ban

The Grand Forks City Council has passed a smoking ban for bars, casinos and truck stops.

As with the previous week, the vote was an extremely close one with three council members in favor and three against, requiring Mayor Mike Brown to cast a tie-breaking vote.

Council members Art Bakken, Terry Bjerke and Mike McNamara voted "no." Bakken wanted to allow a truck stop that had invested in a smoking room, as allowed under a five-year-old city law, to be able to allow smoking for five more years to recoup expenses. The others were philosophically opposed to telling businesses what to do.

Council members Doug Christensen, Eliot Glassheim and Curt Kreun voted "yes."

Council President Hal Gershman recused himself. He's an alcohol retailer and wanted to avoid the appearance of a conflict with bar owners, who oppose the law.

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