Ohio Bike Week: Block party map changed

SANDUSKY — Ohio Bike Week organizers on Monday released the tentative locations for concerts and vendors during downtown Sandusky's block party portion, June 2-5. One glance at the proposed map, and people should notice some stark changes from prior events. For starters, the two stages moved to spots north of Shoreline Drive alongside waterfront spaces: • The main stage and VIP area will be situated on Jackson Street Pier's northern edge. • The Scott Gast Memorial Stage will be placed at Barrel House Saloon. Additionally, four mobile/temporary bars will also be located in nearby spots: at Schade-Mylander Plaza, on Jackson Street Pier's southern edge and two by Scott Gast's stage abutting Barrel House. Organizers also reserved large chunks of motorcycle parking in areas along and south of Water Street. Most notably, this would include the Jackson Street parking lot, where concerts previously occurred for many years. Due to COVID-19 and resulting bans/restrictions on public gatherings, organizers canceled the block parties planned for 2020 and 2021. In mid-2020, Jackson Street Pier unveiled its new look, and Ohio Bike Week organizers, ever since then, wanted to prioritize this space for the festival. People can visit ohiobikeweek.com/schedule for more information on acts and the times and locations of performances. Regarding street closures, both Ohio Bike Week organizers and Sandusky officials are still working on those details. That map should come out in the coming days. Why did this happen? The new map seemingly solves a problem Ohio Bike Week and city officials publicized in recent days regarding Sandusky's designated outdoor refreshment area. In short, a new layout allows both Ohio Bike Week organizers and downtown business owners to sell alcohol, letting people walk around with cocktails in hand freely throughout Sandusky's designated outdoor refreshment area. Here's some context that led to this compromise: • In 2021, a new city law sanctioned people to legally consume alcoholic beverages within an imaginary boundary encompassing downtown. • The law, often called "DORA," allows people to purchase a drink, such as beer or wine, from a business, leave that particular establishment and walk around on public property within this area's confines. People, however, can't travel into another establishment with a "DORA" beverage bought elsewhere. • Problems popped up, however, as this year marks the first time Ohio Bike Week occurs with a designated outdoor refreshment area law in effect. • During the block party, and because of its special liquor license, Ohio Bike Week is actually treated like a business and not an event. • Thus the outdoor drinking law and subsequent rules would have kicked in for Ohio Bike Week. • Under Bike Week's old layout, along Market and Water streets, someone leaving a downtown-based brick-and-mortar restaurant or bar couldn't bring an alcoholic drink within Ohio Bike Week's event zone, which overlaps with Sandusky's designated outdoor refreshment area. • It's a similar philosophy to people prohibited from traveling into a business with a drink bought from a different establishment. Over the past few days, bar owners expressed concerns about possibly losing out on money because of these rules. Many claimed it denied them an opportunity to benefit from downtown's largest festival, attracting thousands of people. The new map, in all likelihood, alleviates these issues. Relocating the bars and stages north of Shoreline Drive translates to a majority of downtown businesses continuing their participation in the designated outdoor refreshment area without any changes or impacts. The only establishment potentially affected is Barrel House, a main sponsor/partner of Ohio Bike Week and where concerts will be located. Its status, for how and where people can drink on the go, is under legal review. Those representing the city and Ohio Bike Week appreciated each other's cooperation in this developing situation. "We look forward to this being a successful event in downtown Sandusky," city communications manager Tom Horsman said.