Rochester City Council approves DORA ordinance

On a 4-2 vote this week, the Rochester City Council approved establishing a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA) in the city's downtown. Implementation is pending approval by the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission.  

Under the DORA ordinance, anyone 21 years and older can buy alcoholic beverages from approved vendors and retail establishments and then carry them outside to be consumed within the designated district. 

Council members who voted in opposition to the proposal were Brian Fitzwater, District 3, and John Garrett, District 5. Councilwoman Ruth Gunter, District 1, abstained from voting on the proposal due to owning a downtown business, Ruthless Bar & Patio. 

The council got its first look at a draft ordinance to establish a downtown DORA last summer. The meeting that followed drew a crowd that filled the council chambers and spilled into the lobby of Rochester City Hall. Mayor Trent Odell additionally noted that there was an outpouring of emails and phone calls to city officials both for and against establishing a DORA.

Speaking in favor of a DORA were Alissa Ferro, owner of Uncorked; Harry Webb, president of the Rochester Downtown Partnership (RDP); Jared Tyler, a managing partner of Tip A Canoe Brews; Brice Romine, owner of Jarrety's Place and Arlington Public House; Monica Smith, owner of Putt's Bar & Grill; and Julie Shambarger, executive director of the Times Theater and Rochester Downtown Partnership.

Those to speak in opposition included four local pastors, Bill McSpadden, Rob Ruberg, Don Meyer and Terry Baldwin, as well as a local teacher, mother, veteran and assistant pastor. 

A steering committee then identified 25 active DORAs in the state, with more in the works. It also identified key goals and target audiences for a DORA. 

Key goals include business support to create an environment downtown where people want to spend time and support local businesses, revitalization to support the continual growth of the historic downtown and quality of life to create a livable, walkable downtown and Main Street with opportunities to shop, work, live and play. 

Target audiences for a DORA include out-of-town visitors, locals wanting to support downtown and owners of restaurants and businesses. 

"Having a downtown DORA allows the creation of events that will attract visitors to Rochester, provides more events for locals and more intentionally supports the financial investment our restaurant and business owners have put into our downtown," the steering committee stated. 

The committee additionally noted that the DORA boundaries were set with a focus on safe travel between downtown restaurants. 

Once implemented, hours for the DORA are to be: 4-11 p.m. Monday-Thursday; and 11 a.m.-midnight Friday and Saturday. There would be no DORA on Sundays. Additionally, city officials are to communicate with business owners to suspend DORA activities during family events, such as Boofest or the Holiday Stroll.

Rochester's Downtown DORA is to be submitted to the state next week. Logansport's Downtown DORA reportedly took three weeks to get approved.