“They can open up more seating outside to bring more people downtown, to keep people shopping,” Bulgin said.
A DORA allows a patron of an establishment serving alcohol to take a drink out of the building and walk within district boundaries. The drink must be in a specially marked “plastic container” showing it was purchased within the district.
Store owners would decide if they wanted to allow people with a drink to come into the business. If not, there would be a sign for them to post.
The DORA concept was outlined this month for Tipp City Council. Establishing a district would take the approval of the council following a filing of an application and public notice of the proposal.
The goal in Tipp City is to have a DORA in place by Labor Day Weekend, said City Manager Tim Eggleston. Expanded district boundaries possibly could be considered for a special event such as the annual Mum Festival, he said. This year’s festival has been canceled by the festival committee because of COVID-19.
DORA requirements include:
- Communities of 35,000 people or less can create one DORA
- District boundaries must be marked with appropriate signs stating, “no alcohol beyond this point”
- District must have at least four qualified liquor permit holders
- Area cannot exceed 150 contiguous areas.
A DORA was approved this year for Dayton’s Oregon District. Others are in Springfield, Springboro and Miami Twp., among others.
“I don’t think there’s really any opposition,” Eggleston said. The time is right to seek the designation with a possible additional restaurant downtown and plans for a craft beer establishment.
The application would be required to include specific boundaries for the district; hours of operation - 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. was suggested; a sanitation plan; and the number of signs needed for designating the selected area.
The Tipp City DORA project is a partnership between the DTCP, the Tipp City Chamber of Commerce and the city. “We would like to move forward with opportunities to bring people here,” said Liz Sonnanstine, chamber president.
No council member spoke against the DORA. Eggleston said Police Chief Eric Burris was researching other communities and their DORA’s to see if there had been any problems.
If the district is approved, council would need to consider its renewal every five years. Council also could vote to nullify the district if there were problems, Eggleston said.
Contact this contributing writer at nancykburr@aol.com
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