Open Container Laws Ditched in Cincinnati's The Banks Entertainment District

The trend toward the liberalization of outdoor drinking laws continues in Cincinnati. The turned is prevalent enough that this isn't even the first example of a "designated outdoor refreshment area" on the Ohio River.

1 minute read

December 23, 2020, 7:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Cincinnati Suspension Bridge

Rosamar / Shutterstock

Mariel Carbone reports that the city of Cincinnati is moving forward with a plan to create an open container entertainment district and open street in The Banks, a mixed-use project still taking shop near the Great American Ballpark on the Ohio River.

A 500-foot stretch of Freedom Way between Joe Nuxhall Way and Walnut Street would be closed to all vehicle traffic, according to Carbone, to create pedestrian plaza for restaurant and bar patrons to walk with designated cup in hand.

The idea for the designated outdoor refreshment area, or DORA for short, is compared to Beale Street in Memphis in the article, but cities around the country have been relaxing open container laws in outdoor entertainment districts since before the pandemic upended conceptions of public space. Nearby Bellevue, Kentucky adopted its own version of a DORA in November 2019, for example, in addition to Covington, Kentucky.

Briana Rice provides additional news coverage of Cincinnati's plans to allow outdoor drinking in The Banks.

Tuesday, December 15, 2020 in WCPO

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

White and purple sign for Slow Street in San Francisco, California with people crossing crosswalk.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths

Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

July 1, 2025 - KQED

Google street view image of strip mall in suburban Duncanville, Texas.

Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall

A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.

5 hours ago - Parking Reform Network

Blue tarps covering tents set up by unhoused people along chain link fence on concrete sidewalk.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work

Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

7 hours ago - Next City

Aerial tram moving along cable in hilly area in Medellin, Colombia.

In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle

Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.

July 6 - InTransition Magazine