Dublin, Findlay, Worthington, Middletown, Lebanon, Grove City, Greenville, Hamilton, Midford, Loveland, Toldeo, Hudson, Powell, Delaware…what do these cities have in common?  DORA!

               And no, not the explorer of animated fame.  DORA stands for “Designated Outdoor Recreation Area.”  In Ohio, section 4301.82 of the Ohio Revised Code, makes it legal for municipalities to designate special areas for outdoor drinking.  Worthington, for example, approved this because some eateries in the downtown area were unable to offer “full service” outside, because fencing would limit the pedestrian traffic on sidewalks.  So, DORA allows more outdoor dining.  (Well, at least, more outdoor drinking.) Further, it allows for “large scale events” would be “less restrictive.” That’s because DORA allows for patrons of such events to circulate freely throughout these large scale events (the ones that we really shouldn’t be having right now).  So, there you have it.  The wonderful freedoms we enjoy so much.  We enjoy them so much that Worthington, along with the 14 other Ohio cities listed above – oh, and about 13 more than that –  have all approved DORA for their towns.

               Maybe you can already tell that I’m not a fan.  I mean, listen, I enjoy my drink as much as the next fellow.  In fact, give me a good glass of wine, or a little bourbon on ice, and I’m generally a happy camper.  I just don’t really need to take that glass of wine or bourbon and wander around the downtown area, or sit at a picnic table (unless it’s the one on my patio), or use it to enjoy a “large scale event.” Honestly, for most large scale events –once I feel safe again at them (which at this point will be sometime in 2025) – I need both hands free.  What I don’t need is a sloshy drink in one hand while I get a buzz to enjoy the pumpkins, or ice cream, or strawberries.

               But that’s me.  Apparently, many are excited by DORA.  What fun!  Now we can have “full service” dining by walking around with a beer.  We can enjoy the outdoors – motorcycles roaring by, cars without mufflers, kids on skateboards – you know, all the fun stuff of a municipality – while sipping our scotch. Hooray! Oh, and there’s more.  In some places, businesses can put up a decal of some sort to let us know we can take our drink in and shop.  If those businesses are open, of course, when I’m choosing to dine (i.e. shop and drink). 

                Now I can have the exciting adventure of taking my DORA cup into a business with the decal indicating they are not participating so that some poor schmuck making minimum wage can politely ask me to leave.  There’s more!  Because I’m drinking, I won’t be wearing my mask.  Or, I’ll be wearing it as a chin guard, so they can also politely ask me to wear my mask in their store.  This will give me permission to call them names, swear at them, and all manner of amusements. 

               DORA sounds like something I’m really going to love.  I can see why so many cities think it’s good for “business.” There’s just nothing like expanding freedoms, especially when it involves alcohol.  Because heaven knows that when we drink, we make our best decisions and behave the most appropriately.