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St. Louis bar owner testifies against city's 2011 smoking ban ordinance

A St. Louis bar owner says enforcement of the city's smoking ban would end his business.

Herbert Krischke owns a south St. Louis bar called the Trophy Room. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Krischke testified Monday in his lawsuit asking a judge to block the city from enforcing a 2011 smoking ban ordinance, or to declare it unconstitutional.

The 2011 law gave five-year exemptions to about 100 bars, but those exemptions expired on Jan. 2. Krischke says up to 85 percent of his clients smoke.

City officials argue that Krischke could get new business from non-smokers.

The Lumiere Place casino will keep its exemption, and some bar owners say that's an unfair double standard.

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