CARMEL, Ind. -- The city of Carmel will be joining a number of other Central Indiana cities in establishing an area where individuals are able to carry open alcoholic beverages in certain areas.
During Monday's meeting of the Carmel City Council, the council established a designated outdoor refreshment area, or DORA, through a 7-1 vote. Anita Joshi, the west district council representative, was the lone nay vote.
The boundaries for Carmel's DORA zone will be from First Street Northwest to West Carmel Drive and Third Avenue Southwest to South Rangeline Road. According to previous reports, individuals are able to purchase from restaurants and vendors participating in the DORA and the outdoor carrying and drinking of the beverages are only allowed within those boundaries.
Matthew Snyder, a member of the Carmel City Council, said during the meeting that the hours of the district will be:
- 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday
- 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday
- 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday.
Snyder said that there will be exceptions to the hours during city-wide events. Signs indicating where the DORA district begins and ends will be featured on the sidewalk with QR codes, bringing up information about the DORA district and the rules that patrons will be required to follow.
Snyder said that the city of Carmel will also establish a DORA committee where citizens will be able to publicly present any concerns. This committee will feature appointments from the city council, along with appointments from the mayor of Carmel's office, the Carmel-Clay Parks and Recreation Department as well as a sworn police officer with the Carmel Police Department.
During the meeting, Teresa Ayers, a member of the city council, said that she believes this ordinance will help local restaurants and businesses, for both Carmel residents and those coming in from out of town.
Joshi said that she feels that Carmel does not need this particular ordinance for individuals to support local businesses.
"The DORA districts came up from the state level because they were looking to use this as an economic development tool to support struggling districts and struggling cities to try and bring in more traffic and increase their economic development goals," Joshi said prior to her nay vote during Monday's meeting. "I still feel that Carmel is a city that is thriving well and I'm not sure that this is the economic development tool that we need in this city."
According to previous reports, Westfield and Noblesville have also gone through the process of establishing a DORA, along with Speedway and Bargersville.
Carmel officials said during the meeting that the state's alcohol and tobacco commission needs to approve the city's DORA ordinance, which will be the final step in establishing the zone. Officials did not provide a timeline on when that could occur.