Words by Jenny Lynn Davis | Images by Nick Rizzo
Mayor Marion Combs walks around the lobby of Dora City Hall admiring the historic photographs lining the walls. He points to one in particular, a car-lined streetscape filled with storefronts in what is now known as old Dora.
“That’s what it looked like when I was growing up,” he says. “I used to play on those streets.”
For Combs, Dora is home in the deepest sense of the word. He was born and raised here, graduated from Dora High School in 1974, and has spent much of his adult life in public service. That long view shapes the way he talks about the city. He remembers what Dora was, knows what it has been through, and believes strongly in where it can go next.
Now serving as mayor after decades on the city council, Combs speaks with the confidence of someone who knows the city block by block and project by project. He first joined the Dora Fire Department as a young volunteer because he wanted to help. In 1984, he ran for city council with the goal of making sure Dora’s children had a strong park and recreation system. He said that early desire to serve eventually turned into a lifelong commitment to the city.
That same sense of responsibility still drives him today.
“I think Dora is on the verge of moving forward,” Combs says. “I think Dora is a great place to live.” He points to the city’s people, its churches, its park, its lake, its schools and its growing commercial activity as reasons for optimism. Each morning, he said, he wakes up thinking about Dora’s roughly 2,400 residents and 50 city employees and asking himself what he can do that day to make the city better.
Asked about the biggest positive things happening in Dora right now, Combs does not hesitate. At the top of his list is the new Dora High School, which he sees as a major point of pride for the community. He also highlights Love’s Travel Center and Arby’s at Heritage Landing off Interstate 22 and says working with both Love’s and Drummond Company has been an honor. He said the city wants to support businesses that choose Dora and help them succeed. He also pointed to Tractor Supply’s planned arrival as another encouraging sign for local growth.
Residential growth is also on his mind. Combs said he is hopeful the Lockerbie subdivision near the new high school will soon begin moving again and return to building homes. More homes, he said, mean more residents, which can lead to more shopping, more activity, and a stronger local economy.
Infrastructure is another major focus. Combs said the city is continuing work connected to a water tank grant for South Dora through the Heritage Landing project. While there is currently sufficient water in the area, he said a tank will help support future growth. He also shared that he has applied for a $250,000 Rebuild Alabama grant to improve a street in poor condition, with plans aimed at making it safer and addressing drainage issues. Along with those efforts, he is proud of Dora’s storm shelter and what it represents for the safety and preparedness of the community. He is also looking ahead to the arrival of a new rescue unit for the Dora Fire Department, which is expected before the end of the year.
He is equally proud of projects that speak to quality of life. Combs praised Dora’s Mining Museum for continuing to operate, host activities and welcome visitors, and lauded Horse Creek Golf Course for being a destination for golfers from across the region and a source of pride for the city. He also spoke enthusiastically about efforts to strengthen the city’s park program, which he said had slowed in recent years. Working alongside the city council, he said the goal is to bring youth sports back in a stronger way and continue improving park facilities. The basketball court, he noted, is already seeing heavy use, and pickleball has become so popular that the city is considering adding two more courts because players are lining up to use the ones already there.
Combs also takes pride in practical, visible improvements that residents notice every day. He said Dora’s streets are clean, brush is being picked up, and city staff are committed to moving the city forward. He repeatedly credits the council, department heads and city employees for buying into that vision. “We’re all trying to move forward,” he says.
Among the larger structural changes under discussion is zoning. Combs noted that Dora has never had zoning since its incorporation in 1886, but city leaders are now working to establish it in certain areas. He supports that effort and sees it as part of building a stronger future for the city.
Even as he focuses on what is ahead, Combs remains deeply aware of the work that came before him. He reflected on earlier years in city government under Mayor Sides Sr., when Dora expanded sewer access, added a medical clinic, upgraded fire services, improved infrastructure around the lake, and invested in recreation amenities including the walking track. To Combs, those years showed what is possible when a city is committed to progress. He believes Dora is finding that momentum again.
Combs served on the city council for 28 years altogether, first beginning in 1984, then returning from 2016 to 2020 before running for mayor. He describes himself as an aggressive, hands-on leader who likes to get out, look at problems up close and work with others to make things better. He is quick to thank Dora’s citizens for trusting him over the years and says it is an honor to serve them.
Outside of City Hall, Combs is a family man. He said he treasures time with his wife, Cathy, his daughters, grandchildren and great grandchildren, and that even amid the demands of the mayor’s office, he makes space to simply be “Granddad.”
For all the projects he names, the funding he is pursuing, and the development he hopes to see, Combs keeps coming back to something simpler: his affection for Dora itself.
“I love Dora,” he says. “Dora is my home.”From Combs, standing in a hallway lined with photographs of the city that raised him, it sounds like both a memory and a promise. Dora’s history is never far from his mind. Neither, it seems, is its future. WL
