Central Ohio communities have split over when children can trick-or-treat this year. The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission has long recommended holding the event on the Thursday before Halloween when Oct. 31 falls on a weekend, but local schedules still differ. Some communities will hold “beggar's night” Thursday, Oct. 29; others will keep it on Halloween, Saturday, Oct. 31. The regional panel recommends a date. Communities set their own schedules.
A recommendation, not one shared schedule
The commission's recommendation focuses largely on safety and conflicts, including football games, community events and more drivers on the road. Many Central Ohio communities aren't following it this year. The result: a patchwork of dates and hours, not one regionwide night. Each listed community has a scheduled window on one of the two dates.
For Thursday, Oct. 29, Bexley lists 5:30-7 p.m.; Blendon Township, 6-8 p.m.; Canal Winchester, 5:30-7:30 p.m.; Circleville, 6-8 p.m.; Chillicothe, 6-7:30 p.m.; Columbus, 6-8 p.m.; Dublin, 6-8 p.m.; Gahanna, 6-8 p.m.; Grove City, 6-8 p.m.; and Groveport, 5:30-7 p.m.
Thursday schedules also include Heath, 5:30-7 p.m.; Hebron, 5:30-7 p.m.; Hilliard, 6-8 p.m.; Johnstown, 6-7:30 p.m.; Lancaster, 6-7:30 p.m.; London, 6-8 p.m.; New Albany, 6-8 p.m.; Newark, 5:30-7 p.m.; Obetz, 6-8 p.m.; Perry Township, 6-8 p.m.; Pickerington, 6-8 p.m.; Prairie Township, 6-8 p.m.; Reynoldsburg, 6-8 p.m.; Upper Arlington, 6-8 p.m.; Washington Court House, 6-8 p.m.; Westerville, 6-8 p.m.; West Jefferson, 5:30-7:30 p.m.; and Whitehall, 6-8 p.m.
Halloween stays on the calendar in 13 communities
Bellefontaine, 6-7:30 p.m.; Delaware, 6-8 p.m.; Galena, 6-8 p.m.; Gambier, 5:30-7 p.m.; Genoa Township, 6-8 p.m.; Marion, 5:30-7:30 p.m.; and Marysville, 6-8 p.m. have scheduled trick-or-treating for Saturday, Oct. 31.
The remaining Saturday schedules are Mount Vernon, 5:30-7 p.m.; Orange Township, 6-8 p.m.; Pataskala, 6-8 p.m.; Plain City, 5-7 p.m.; Powell, 6-8 p.m.; and Worthington, 6-8 p.m. Those communities are keeping trick-or-treating on Halloween, while the Thursday schedule places the event two days earlier.
The case for moving the event is practical: the commission points to safety and possible conflicts with football games, community events and increased traffic. But a recommendation from a regional planning body hasn't created one common schedule across Central Ohio. The dates and hours remain divided, so families need to check which night their own community has listed.