SALEM — The downtown committee discussed potentially revising a long-time restriction of the city’s Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA) ahead of its pending renewal.

First approved by the city council in 2019, the DORA allows people to purchase alcohol from a participating bar or restaurant in a designated cup and freely walk around within its boundaries during DORA hours.

The DORA covers most of the downtown area and has had its hours of operation extended several times in recent years, most recently on April 15, 2025, when the city council voted unanimously to expand its hours of operation from noon through 10 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, to noon through 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. However, that expansion did not overturn a prohibition against the DORA’s operation during the annual Salem Super Cruise which has been in place since the initial application was filed in 2019.

By law, the city is required to consider whether to continue the DORA after five years or let it lapse, and in an April 7 meeting of the downtown committee several business owners requested the city council not only continue the DORA but consider removing that prohibition.

Downtown Salem Partnership President Will Kline said that the DORA helps to set both Salem and its business apart from neighboring communities competing for the same customers and entices people into the downtown area. He also said that the Downtown Salem Partnership has found that many of the customers who have come downtown from outside of Salem for DORA events become repeat customers for local businesses.

Scott Larrick, owner of the OG Ltd. On Broadway Avenue, argued that in addition to its effectiveness as a promotional tool the DORA affords businesses downtown and customers additional flexibility, as it allows customers to enjoy their alcohol and socialize outside even at businesses with locations that do not permit an enclosed patio space.

Salem Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Alicia Johnston said that the numbers of businesses taking advantage of the DORA has also been on the rise, with the chamber having seen an approximately 100% increase in DORA Participation over the last year.

SOD Center Executive Director Julie Needs said that the marketing benefits of the DORA extend beyond the local businesses to the city itself and is “a big selling point” when SOD is attempting to attract new businesses and property developers into the city.

City Council President Evan Newman asked if there was a time when DORA cups are purchased most often, and Johnston said that they are mostly purchased during the Summer when events are being held which overlap with the DORA area like restaurant and bar crawls and outdoor concerts at McCulloch Park.

Larick argued that removing the prohibition against the DORA’s operation during the cruise would help businesses which are adversely affected by changes to traffic patterns like the closure of Broadway Avenue to recoup some of that lost business. He suggested that certain areas like the large municipal parking lot across the street from Boneshakers which serve as a hub for activity during the Super Cruise could simply deny entry with a DORA cup like businesses in the area which do not want to participate do during DORA events. He also noted that despite seeing heavy utilization, he was unaware of any issues that occurred when DORA cups were briefly being sold in error during last year’s cruise.

Councilman Jim Harrington asked why the restriction had been implemented during the initial application in 2019, and Councilwoman Jayne Bricker and Newman explained that exclusion had been requested both by law enforcement and from the car enthusiasts that participate in the cruise.

Mayor Cyndi Baronzzi Dickey explained that Gene Johnson, who was the Super Cruise Director at the time, was “strongly against” the DORA being in effect during the Super Cruise due to the number of teenage volunteers and attendees at the cruise. She also said that Johnson had been concerned that most of the cruisers and car clubs that participated in the Super Cruise would not attend if the DORA were in effect.

Councilman Jeff Stockman suggested that instead of having a particular event or dates where the DORA is prohibited as part of its regulations, that the question could instead be made part of the city’s event application. He argued that this would allow the flexibility to allow the DORA to be in effect for any given event, while still being able to suspend DORA operation during that event in the future if it proved to be problematic. He also noted that as event applications are approved by the city council, it would have a built-in review process.

The committee ultimately voted unanimously to direct City Law Director Brooke Zellers to draft legislation which would continue the DORA with the changes suggested by Stockman for review by the city council.

There will be a public hearing for any comments on the continuation of the DORA at 6:45 p.m. May 5 prior to the city council’s meeting.