Corey Montie wants to be perfectly clear about his December 17th event.

“It’s not a charity. It’s not political, and we don’t have a cause,” he said. “Basically, our message is, ‘Let’s go out dressed as Santa and get drunk.’”

“It’s a night of debauchery, but in a lighthearted way.”

Montie, a San Francisco native and Columbus resident since 2009, founded the capital city’s version of the Bay City’s longtime holiday tradition, SantaCon, two years ago after uncovering “small pockets” of Central Ohio residents who were craving an organized evening of Saint Nick-attired revelry.

Montie said the SantaCon movement has thrived in cities across the country since its 1994 birth in San Francisco and, upon arriving in Columbus more than two years ago, was shocked to discover the lack of inebriated Kris Kringles wandering our city streets during the holiday season.

“I was bummed out . . . there was no large and organized [SantaCon movement] when I got here,” he said.

The initial event, for which Montie recruited through social networking, garnered a group of about 40 red-coated bar hoppers, but this year he estimates there will be hundreds.

“We don’t know what to expect,” he said. “It’s mostly word of mouth.”

Although the rather informal nature of the event is obvious, Montie is quite serious when it comes to the night’s itinerary. All polyester-bearded participants are strongly encouraged to stay together as a group throughout the evening – the more the merrier, and the better to turn the heads of more traditionally dressed bar patrons. The jolly revelers are also strongly encouraged to take a cab at the end of the night. The CPD will still dole out a DUI to those intoxicated behind the reins of a sleigh.

“You don’t see (several dozen) Santas sitting at a bar drinking pints very often,” Montie said.

Arena District bars will offer food and drink specials and has pinned down a roadmap of establishments that welcome the thirsty North Pole-dwellers.

Wedging oneself into a $15 Santa costume and braving potentially frigid temperatures to trek around the city in search of a good time, might not, on the surface, seem like everyone’s cup of tea. But hey, what else are you going to do during December in Ohio?

“Columbus has such good nightlife, but there isn’t much during the winter besides Gallery Hop,” Montie said. “We’re trying to change that.”

For more info on SantaCon Columbus, visit www.santacon.info/columbus-oh.