At its meeting this week, the Meriden City Council approved a proposal that will raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products and tobacco alternatives such as e-cigarettes to 21-years-old this fall.

The item was approved by an 8-2 vote according to a report by MyRecordJournal.comwhich added that retailers who sell to an underage person will receive a written warning for a first violation, a $100 fine for a second violation and a $250 fine for any subsequent violations.

The increase is scheduled to go into effect 180 days following its adoption, which would be Oct. 12, 2019.

Meriden is home to nearly 61,000 people and is located nearly halfway between New Haven and Hartford.

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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.