Bridgeport has passed an ordinance to raise the legal age to buy smoking products from 18 to 21 years old.

The City Council passed the ordinance, which restricts the sale of both real and electronic cigarettes to anyone under 21.

City Health Director Maritza Bond says smoking is an epidemic among young people and it needs to be stopped. 

"This is a clear epidemic, and so we want to fight this epidemic of tobacco products especially e-cigarettes and vaping that affect our youth because the marketing is really targeting our youth purposely," Bond says.

Bridgeport is now the second city behind Hartford to raise the smoking age to 21.

Tony's Smoke Shop has been a mainstay for nearly two decades. The shop's owner says the city should reconsider and that he’s wondering if he should move.

"Our neighbors’ cities, they are going to take our customers away from us," says Tony Mohigel. "Two miles away there is another town...we are surrounded by Fairfield, Trumbull, Stratford."

It was not immediately clear when the new law would go into effect.