Beaches in Charlevoix County, Michigan could be tobacco free if the county’s board of commissioners votes in favor of a proposal Wednesday morning.

The county sits on the northwestern corner of the peninsula, with a pair of beaches on Lake Michigan. Litter is the primary motivator for the proposal, according to a report on PetoskeyNews.com.

While county health officials and the parks department have endorsed the ban, the proposal’s passage doesn’t appear to be a sure thing, as Commissioner Chris Christensen said that while he supports it, he also worries about overregulation.

Should it pass, the next plan is to make all parks tobacco-free, though parks director Ross Maxwell didn’t give a timeline for when that proposal would be put forward.

Charlevoix County has a population of just over 26,000 residents as of 2013 census estimates.

Avatar photo

Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.