A stroll around Baltimore shows a bright new addition in many neighborhoods: fluorescent islands on otherwise dim blocks. Smoke shops. They’re impossible to miss.
They seem to be popping up everywhere and their distinctive LED-rimmed windows have been triggering complaints from neighbors. Plus there’s confusion over what they are and what kinds of merchandise they sell … and to whom. City officials are concerned about sales to young people and the illegal sale of drugs inside, and a package of bills to regulate and limit these businesses was introduced by the city council last fall.
Regulators have noticed smoke shops' rapid proliferation: a recent report from the Baltimore City Health Department counted more than 1,200 licensed tobacco retailers in the city. That works out to 15 smoke shops per square mile.
Scott Maucione, WYPR’s health reporter, is covering this story, and he joined Midday guest host Carla Hayden in Studio A.
