When March 1, 2016 rolls around, Ohio County, W.Va. will see its smoking ban expand to cover pubic outdoor areas, including private decks and porches in bars and restaurants, as the Wheeling-Ohio County Board of Health announced earlier this week that it will move forward with plans to snuff out smoking in more places.

One business that will avoid the ban is the Wheeling Island Casino-Hotel-Racetrack and similar gambling establishments in the county of just over 43,000 people.

The ban will also apply to outdoor festivals held within the county, according to a report from WTOV, as well as to hotels and motels according to West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Ohio County is located in the panhandle of the state, the third northernmost county in West Virginia.

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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.