There’s a new parks smoking ban in Effingham, Ill. as the city’s Park Board gave its approval to prohibit tobacco use during its meeting on Wednesday.

The ban goes into effect immediately and applies to the use of all tobacco products within 50 feet of any playground, sports field, tennis court, skate park, pavilion or any other park district facility, according to TheXRadio.com. Fines for violators have not been publicized.

Effingham has population of nearly 13,000 residents and is located in central Illinois, approximately 200 miles southwest of Chicago.

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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.