a collage of eight photos showing a stakeholder meeting, people boarding a bus, a changeable message sign displaying the message race traffic, cars traversing a roadway where barricades delineate travel lanes, a closed-circuit television camera, a crowd of people standing near a train and traversing a pedestrian overpass, two implementation plans, and three traffic management team personnel gathered around a laptop computer

Managing Travel for Planned Special Events

Chapter Four. Regional and Local Coordination
Page 3 of 4

Local Level

Overview of Planned Special Event Permitting

The development of a formal planned special event permit program marks a key program planning initiative to facilitate stakeholder coordination, compliance with community needs and requirements, and efficient event operations planning. Backed by guidelines and regulations specified in municipal ordinances, the program outlines a defined planning framework and schedule for event organizers and participating review agencies to follow. It represents an agreement between participating public agencies (e.g., transportation, law enforcement, public safety, etc.) to ensure, through planning activities or review, that all planned special events meet a set of mutually agreed upon requirements for day-of-event travel management. A municipal permit represents approval, or agreement between a jurisdiction and event organizer, to operate a planned special event, and it includes provisions outside of travel management. Larimer County, WY defines the purpose of a planned special event permit as follows:

The purpose of the special event permit is to insure that any changes, restrictions, or adaptations, resulting from such an event are managed in a safe, prudent, and legal manner in order to protect the health, safety, welfare, and convenience of the traveling public and citizens of Larimer County.

Special event permits apply to a single jurisdiction, and numerous cities and counties, encompassing metropolitan, urban, and/or rural areas, across the Nation maintain a special event permit program. In contrast, a state DOT permit targets the satisfactory maintenance and protection of traffic on state highways necessitating partial or full closure due to a proposed street use event. In most cases, state DOTs encourage event organizers to use county roads or local streets whenever possible.

Some important considerations and applications of planned special event permitting include:

Permitting proves particularly effective for less frequent continuous events, street use events, and rural events occurring at a temporary venue not having a known spectator capacity. These events place an emphasis on advance planning and public outreach to mitigate traffic operations deficiencies and community impacts.
Jurisdictions may not require a permit for special events held at permanent venues, such as stadiums, arenas, and amphitheaters.
Permitting allows jurisdictions the opportunity to engage the event organizer at the beginning of the event operations phase.
Public stakeholders can size-up the event operations characteristics of a proposed event in order to schedule adequate personnel and equipment resources to accommodate the event. Resources may include traffic control, security, and maintenance.
From the event organizer's perspective, a special event permit application and associated regulations outlines a general approach toward successfully managing travel for the event, facilitates coordination with appropriate stakeholders, and gauges resource requirements on the day-of-event.

The balance of this section on permitting will describe special event application components, review processes, guidelines, and regulations specific to managing travel for a planned special event. The section will include numerous references to special event permitting in city and county jurisdictions.

Permit Process

Initiation of the permit process for a specific planned special event begins with the submission of a completed special event permit application by the event organizer. The permit application represents a formal proposal by the organizer to stage a planned special event. In some cases, particularly those where the event organizer requests assistance from the jurisdiction in locating a suitable venue location or street use event route, the event organizer and pertinent public stakeholders may interact prior to application submission to review the proposed event and permit process.

Table 4-3 lists public stakeholders that may administer special event permit applications and issue permits. In small and medium-sized locales, law enforcement, transportation department, or city/town manager's office commonly processes a special event application for review internally and by other agencies in the jurisdiction. Some metropolitan jurisdictions have an office of special events that serves in a similar capacity. A local district partnership may assume a lead role in the permit process for events proposed in commercial areas. Jurisdictions issue an event permit based either on:

A single official, such as a police chief, fire chief, director of public works, or elected official, rendering a final decision based on reviewer(s) input.
A multi-agency application approval where each agency signs off on the permit when the event organizer meets specific agency prerequisites.

Table 4-3a. Stakeholders Governing Permit Applications
Application Administration
Local law enforcement Local transportation department Fire department City/town manager's office City/town clerk Community development department Office of special events Local district partnership Public works department Parks and recreation department Bureau of licenses Office of finance Risk management office

Table 4-3b. Stakeholders Governing Permit Applications
Permit Approval
Police chief Fire chief Transportation department director Director of public works Multi-agency approval (e.g., public works, law enforcement, and city manager) City manager Community development director Street and sidewalk use coordinator of the bureau of licenses Local district partnership City/town council County board of commissioners Local planning commission

Figure 4-3 presents a flowchart summarizing key event organizer and public agency actions throughout the special event permit process, from submitting a permit application to conducting the proposed event. Agencies administering a permit application may assign a staff person, representing the jurisdiction's event coordinator, who will assist the event organizer throughout the permit process. Table 4-4 indicates permit application submission deadlines for several cities and counties. Application deadlines significantly influence the scope of activities performed during the permit process. To effect a comprehensive permit application review, including stakeholder meetings and public outreach, jurisdictions should mandate permit application deadlines at least 60 days prior to a large-scale planned special event. A shorter deadline is warranted when jurisdictions, for example Wichita, KS (30 day deadline), require event organizers to arrange all details with individual involved agencies prior to submitting a permit application for approval.

flow chart summarizing key event organizer and public agency actions throughout the special event permit process, from submitting a permit application to conducting the proposed event

Figure 4-3. Planned Special Event Permit Process D

Table 4-4. Planned Special Event Permit Application Submission Deadline
Location	Submission Deadline Prior to Event
Minneapolis, MN	5 days for parade; 60 days for race
Las Vegas, NV	14 days
Stamford, CT	14 days
Fort Collins, CO	20 days minimum; 1 year maximum
Jackson, CA	20 days
Clarksville, TN	30 days
Coos Bay, OR	30 days
Hot Springs, AR	30 days
Lancaster, PA	30 days
West Des Moines, IA	30 days
Wichita, KS	30 days
City and County of Honolulu, HI	40 days minimum; 9 months maximum
Bowling Green, KY	45 days
Reno, NV	45 days minimum; 1 year maximum
Larimer County, WY	40 days; 50 days for road closure
Louisville, KY	60 days
City and County of Denver, CO	60 days
Kane County, IL	60 days
Menlo Park, CA	60 days
Miami Beach, FL	60 days
Milwaukee, WI	60 days
Ypsilanti, MI	60 days
Montgomery County, MD	2 months
Virginia Beach, VA	60–90 days
Redmond, WA	90 days
Evanston, IL	90 days
Aurora, IL	120 days

The special event permit process serves to scope, schedule, and direct event operations planning activities for proposed events. This reduces unnecessary delay in facilitating stakeholder coordination, developing planning deliverables (e.g., traffic management plan, etc.), reviewing mitigation strategies, and mobilizing personnel and equipment resources required to stage a particular planned special event. Practitioners may expand and contract the process in order to best fit: (1) the area type and involved stakeholders, (2) the special guidelines and regulations unique to a particular jurisdiction, (3) the operations characteristics of a particular event, and (4) the purpose of a particular event, such as community events versus commercial, for-profit events involving event organizers from the private sector. Chapter 2 of this handbook, under a section on "Impact Level," summarizes example decision criteria and thresholds used to determine the need to initiate a special event permit process in addition to event permit requirements.

As indicated in Figure 4-3, jurisdictions should conduct a preliminary review of the proposed special event date and time in addition to, if a street use event, the proposed parade or race route. Table 4-5 shows select jurisdiction regulations prohibiting the issuance of a permit for a special event occurring at a certain time and/or location. Aside from regulations designed to avoid conflicts with commuter traffic, the possibility of staging multiple events concurrently may cause significant travel impacts and logistics problems. Law enforcement, traffic engineering, and fire department agencies may conduct a preliminary review of a proposed event route and grant approval contingent on required traffic control measures. This step should occur prior to distributing a street use event application to all necessary agencies with preliminary approval rendered at least 30 days prior to the event. To expedite this step, San Luis Obispo, CA, for example, maintains two standard parade routes.

Table 4-5. Planned Special Event Permit Restrictions
Location	Event Category	Restriction
City and County of Honolulu, HI	Street use event	No parade or activity permitted between the hours of 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. In the Central Business District, a parade or activity permitted only on weekends and holidays or after 6:00 p.m. on weekdays. No parade or activity permitted to use or travel the entire distance on Hotel Street, from Richards Street to North King Street. Only one parade or activity permitted on any given day on any street.
Louisville, KY	All events	Permit holders shall open the event venue to patrons at least one hour prior to the event.
Miami Beach, FL	All events	No special event permitted if it interferes with a previously scheduled activity or repair work scheduled for a site. No event permitted if it interferes with any other scheduled event. The City Manager may take into account simultaneously occurring events in the region or other factors that would impact the city's capability to host an event before approving an event. No permit issued for more than four consecutive days or five non-consecutive days during the course of a calendar year.
Minneapolis, MN	Street use event	No permit granted for a parade/race to be conducted within the downtown area between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. or 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. on any day which is not Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday. No permit granted for bicycle racing, foot racing, race walking, wheelchair racing, rollerblading, marathons, and jogging events unless the activity is to take place between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.

The special event permit application review phase involves all agencies within a jurisdiction having authority on an entity impacted by the proposed event, and certain agencies may require event organizers to meet prerequisites and/or obtain supplemental permits. Transportation approvals include street occupancy permits, parking variances, and requests for traffic control services.

Some key stakeholder considerations during the permit application review phase include:

Involved agencies may conduct a meeting to coordinate their review and event planning considerations.
For large-scale events, jurisdictions and associated review agencies may meet with the event organizer to discuss additional requirements and contingencies.
Agencies should complete review of a special event permit application within about two weeks of receipt to allow the event organizer sufficient time to revise the application (e.g., site plan, parking plan, traffic control plan, etc.).
To ensure full mitigation of potential local traffic and community impacts, jurisdictions, such as Miami Beach, FL and San Diego, CA (see Appendix A) for example, may require event organizers to present the proposed special event management plan to neighborhood and business associations and the general public for review and recommendation.
The event organizer should deliver the public presentation early in the permit process, at least 30 days prior to the event, so public comments can be incorporated into application revisions.

Jurisdictions typically issue a special event permit approximately 7 to 15 days prior to the event. The lead time allows the event organizer and other stakeholders to carry out necessary tasks under the implementation activities phase. These tasks include determining resource requirements and preparing an operations plan. Certain jurisdictions may handle, by regulation, day-of-event traffic control, while other jurisdictions designate partial or all responsibility to the event organizer. Stakeholders representing the event traffic management team should consider conducting a pre-event walk-through, done a few days before the event to permit modifications, to review the final site plan and traffic management plan.

Table 4-6 provides a snapshot of select jurisdictions and criteria referenced by officials when rendering a final decision on a special event permit application. Due to the changing dynamics of planned special event operations, jurisdictions, particularly in metropolitan areas, may issue a special event permit only days in advance of the event date.

Table 4-6. Planned Special Event Permit Application Decision Criteria
Location	Event Category	Approval Criteria
Anaheim, CA	Street use event	Time of the proposed parade. Place of the proposed parade. Manner in which the proposed parade is to be held. Other proper uses of the streets such as construction/maintenance or pedestrian traffic; construction/maintenance on the streets involved in the proposed parade route.
Menlo Park, CA	All special events	Day(s) of the week; time of day; number of days. Venue distance from nearest legal residential use. Number of people involved. History of complaints.
Minneapolis, MN	Street use event	Conduct of the parade/race does not substantially interrupt the safe and orderly movement of other traffic contiguous to its route or will interfere with street maintenance or other legally permitted events. Concentration of persons, animals, and vehicles at assembly points of the parade/race will not unduly interfere with proper fire and police protection of, or ambulance service to, areas contiguous to such assembly areas. Conduct of such parade/race will not interfere with the movement of firefighting equipment en-route to a fire. Parade/race is scheduled to move from its point of origin and to its point of termination expeditiously and without unreasonable delays en-route.
Redmond, WA	All special events	Event does not disrupt traffic beyond a practical solution. Event does not interfere with access to fire stations and fire hydrants. Event does not cause undue hardship to surrounding businesses and residents. Event does not require the diversion of so many public employees that service is denied to other local residents.
Reno, NV	All special events	Event will not conflict with established on-going events. Event will not create a substantial interruption of public transportation or other traffic; conflict with development in the right-of-way; close major streets during peak commuter hours. Event will not cause a diversion of such a great number of police employees that police protection of the remainder of the city is in jeopardy. Event will not create undue interference with emergency vehicles. Availability of sufficient traffic controllers, crowd monitors, safety equipment, or insurance coverage.
West Des Moines, IA	All special events	Route of the event. Date and time of event. Maximum length of the event Impact on residential and commercial neighbors. Limitations on public use of area requested for event. Number of events previously scheduled in the city on the same date. Amount of city personnel necessary to regulate and monitor the event. Interference with peak transportation periods, movement of the transit vehicles, movement of authorized emergency vehicles, and schedules of various construction projects. Participant provisions including parking and dispersal routes.

Table 4-7 presents a list of common event organizer tasks performed during the special event permit process coupled with example deadlines. A common prerequisite to obtaining a local jurisdiction event permit involves the event organizer securing permits from all jurisdictions controlling roadways slated for temporary full/partial closure. This represents a program planning initiative for managing all planned special events in a region. Appendix A contains Washington State DOT guidelines for street use events conducted on state highways.⁽³⁾ Key event organizer actions typically performed upon receipt of an approved special event permit include:

Notifying emergency service agencies of temporary road closures and access restrictions.
Informing property owners and residents, located in the immediate vicinity of the event venue, of traffic and parking restrictions.
Disseminating travel and parking information to community residents, representing potential event patrons, via media advertisements.

Table 4-7. Event Organizer Special Requirements
Task	Deadline	Specifications
Gain inter-jurisdictional approval	30 days before event.¹	Secure appropriate approval if temporarily closing roadways under the control of another jurisdiction.
Notify transit service	1 month before event.²	Communicate street closure specifics for bus re-routing.
Deliver public presentation	30 days before event.¹	Present special event management plan to appropriate neighborhood associations or local planning board for review and recommendation.
Confirm personnel resources	21 days before event.³	Obtain written confirmation from stakeholders that sufficient traffic management team personnel resources will be available on the day-of-event. Use private staff to patrol private parking lots (not responsibility of on-duty law enforcement officers). Off-duty law enforcement officers must be hired to provide VIP/dignitary escorts and to staff traffic control posts.
Secure parking areas	—	Obtain written confirmation to use private parking lots (schools, churches, businesses).
Notify emergency services	14 days before event.³	Inform fire departments and emergency medical service of the exact location, date, and time of planned road closures.
Inform affected property owners	30 days before event.⁴ 14 days before event.⁵ 10 days before event (14 days for review).³ Minimum 2 days before event and 7 days maximum.⁶	Distribute an approved road closure notice to all property owners adjacent to a planned road closure. Notify property owners, residents, and businesses within 300 feet of the event venue. Distribute parking passes and/or escort passes issued by governing jurisdiction.
Disseminate public advertisement	15 days before event.² 7 days before event.³ 2 days before event.⁷	Publicize the special event through the media, including newspapers, radio and/or television stations. Identify the event date and time, contact information, any traffic and parking restrictions, and a map of the street use event route. Require review of announcement by public stakeholders.
Prepare implementation plan	7 days before event.³	Summarize traffic management plan specifics. Require plan for review by public stakeholders.
Prepare operations detail	Complete before event.	Indicate traffic management team personnel assignments and day-of-event operations activities. Specify radio or cellular interface between agencies comprising the traffic management team.
Hire on-site coordinator	—	Hire a public employee as an overall on-site coordinator, having decision-making authority, whose responsibility will be to ensure that all services are provided, the event runs smoothly, and all governing regulations and ordinances are complied with.
Day-of-event activities	—	Install temporary signs and traffic control devices. Maintain an approved copy of the permit application during the entire special event.
Post-event activities	2 hours after event close.⁸ 30 days after event for report.⁹	Remove temporary signs and traffic control devices. File post-event report. Participate in post-event debriefing with public agencies, affected citizens, and other involved stakeholders to address issues that arose during the event.
Notes: ¹ Miami Beach, FL mandate. ² Louisville, KY mandate. ³ Larimer County, WY mandate. ⁴ San Luis Obispo, CA mandate ⁵ Reno, NV and San Diego, CA mandate. ⁶ Minneapolis, MN mandate. ⁷ Pitken County, CO mandate. ⁸ Larimer County, WY and Kane County, IL mandate. ⁹ U.S. Bureau of Land Management mandate.

Application Components

Table 4-8 summarizes the various items that appear, in a questionnaire format, on a special event permit application. The application serves to communicate event operations characteristics to a jurisdiction, thus permitting it to impose appropriate impact mitigation requirements and/or advise the event organizer to change event operation parameters. Key items include the event purpose that may signal the need to develop contingency plans in response to possible security threats or demonstrations. Information regarding event history and expected attendance assists in achieving a more predictable event travel forecast. The application should prompt the event organizer to indicate travel demand management initiatives, including use of carpools and other modes of travel. Appendix A contains a sample special event permit application from Virginia Beach, VA.

Table 4-8. Planned Special Event Permit Application Components
Application Component	Specifications
Event sponsor/ organizer	Organization, corporation, community group, etc. sponsoring event in addition to professional firm/agency contracted to produce the event.
Primary contact and coordinator	Decision-making authority and continuously available through the day-of-event activities phase. Mailing address, e-mail address, phone (day/night/cell/radio frequency), and fax. Location on day-of-event.
Event name/type of event	Name used to advertise event.
Event date and time	Event date(s). Hours of operation on each event day. Duration of event (if street use event). Proposed timeline of activities through the event day(s). Rain date.
Event location	Location (e.g., street address). Venue attendance capacity. Temporary venue, permanent venue, on-street. Zoning classification of property and/or present use of venue site. Alternate location.
Event purpose	Description of event. Indication whether event differs from previous years. Indication if event is political in nature.
Event history	Number of times event has been held Event produced in other cities. Receipt of a special event permit in the past by the event organizer. Event organizer experience in handling special events.
Expected attendance	Attendance per day. Peak attendance at any given time. Number of participants and spectators. Basis for projection. Attendance at past event occurrences. Target age group (e.g., percent attendance by age group). Estimated number of vehicles generated (cars and busses).
Event preparation	Set up and tear down (date and time) Description of required activities.
Audience accommodation	Admission charge. Parking charge.
Street use event route	Route to be traveled or occupied. Assembly location and time. Completion point. Rest stop areas. Estimated length of parade (front to rear). Maximum interval of space to be maintained between parade units. Minimum and maximum speed of the parade. Number and type of parade floats/vehicles. Number of pedestrians and number/type of animals in parade.
Street closures	Reason for using a non-local roadway. Street segments (indicate by cross streets) and direction of travel. Use of entire street width for event. Occurrence of event in intersections. Bridge closure. Closing date and time and opening date and time. Affected bus transit routes.
Traffic control	Name of private company providing traffic control equipment. Date and time of temporary traffic control equipment setup and removal. Overview of directional signing, number and type of sign.
Access and parking	Available emergency vehicle access. Sidewalk and parking lot closures. Use of public parking lots intended. Establishment of reserved/VIP parking areas. Use of off-site parking areas. Covering of parking meters.
Transportation	Narrative on anticipated congestion impacts and proposed mitigation. Special arrangements for dignitaries. Use of a charter or express service intended. Use of public transportation intended. Development of initiatives to encourage transit use.
Personnel	Number of volunteers and staff working the event. Intended volunteer work assignments. Number of staff working in a supervisory capacity. On-site communications, cellular or radio.
Event notification and advertisement	Notification of other involved jurisdictions and whether a permit has been obtained. Use of media to advertise event (radio, television, print, Internet). Use of a process to notify affected property owners and residents.
Dismantling and clean-up	Restoration of roadway right-of-way and other public property. Clean-up start and end times.

Table 4-9 lists supplemental requirements to a special event permit application, required of the event organizer either at the time of initial application submission or after jurisdiction review of the application questionnaire. Traffic flow plans that specify a street use event route should identify any: (1) hindering of access by authorized emergency vehicles, (2) conflict with bus transit routes, and (3) interference with non-event attendee access to hospitals, airports, transit stations, businesses, churches, and other public buildings. Traffic control plans should address in detail the service and protection of event patron traffic, the accommodation of emergency vehicles and background traffic, and the necessary traffic control equipment and personnel resources. The event site plan and parking plan must provide accessible parking and routes to the event venue. As an example, Table 4-10 shows Miami Beach, FL special event parking and site plan guidelines for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Table 4-9. Planned Special Event Permit Application Supplemental Requirements
Application Component	Specifications
Event site plan	Identify access points/gates, traffic circulation, lighting, and sign locations. Show location of fencing, barriers, and/or barricades including temporary fencing that can be removed for emergency vehicle access. Show adjacent external roads. Show emergency and handicap accessible routes. Identify location for a command/communication center. Provide computer-assisted drawing.
Traffic flow plan	Provide map of street use event route. Show street use event staging and disbanding area. Indicate required sidewalk, street, and parking lot closures. Indicate affected transit routes and proposed mitigation. State locations and/or parking meter numbers that require covering. Indicate traffic flow routes and capacity (e.g., number of travel lanes, etc.)
Traffic control plan	Specify temporary directional sign, advance warning sign, barricade, and traffic cone locations. Conform to Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices specifications. Allow for a continuous, through traffic lane, typically 20 feet wide, on closed roads for use by public safety personnel in an emergency. Show proposed alternate routes. Indicate how normal traffic pattern will be accommodated. Describe how local resident and commercial traffic has access during the event. State what stakeholder furnishes, installs, and removes traffic control equipment. Specify temporary, removable pavement markings only. Provide traffic control agent or law enforcement officer (signalized intersections especially) at all intersections requiring traffic control. Provide volunteers to monitor barricades at all intersections not requiring traffic control personnel. Indicate pedestrian access routes and major pedestrian crossings.
Parking plan	Show parking sites (e.g., paved and unpaved) and access points. State the number and size of vehicles planned to stage for the event in addition to the staging location. Accommodation of media vehicles. Indicate number of spaces available. Include valet parking and route. State the number of parking staff required. Indicate parking lot assignments (e.g., permit, public, fee), costs, and vehicle processing procedures.
Emergency evacuation plan	Evacuation routes.
Notice of event for affected property owners and residents	Present event concept. Indicate travel impacts in addition to planned parking and traffic restrictions. Distribute to residents, businesses, schools, places of worship, and other affected entities.
Event advertising brochure	Provide event operations information (e.g., times, dates, ticket information). Indicate travel information (e.g., directions, parking, travel incentives).
Hold harmless agreement	Specify that event organizer agrees to defend, indemnify, and hold a municipality, including its officers and employees, harmless from any liability or claim caused by the event organizer failing to fulfill all obligations.
Certificate of Insurance	Require event organizer to obtain and name the governing municipality and its employees as insured. Name transportation agencies as insured. Ranges from $500,000 to $1,000,000.

Table 4-10. Guidelines for Compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act⁽⁴⁾
Requirement
All on-site accessible pedestrian routes from accessible parking to the event must be equipped with curb cuts or temporary ramps. All ramps must meet applicable codes. Additional disabled parking must be provided and staffed. A disabled parking area must be designated and located near to the main entrance and accessible to pedestrian routes. Necessary signs must be provided to indicate this parking area. An accessible shuttle may be used for remote parking areas. All Americans with Disabilities Act considerations must be identified on the site plan.

Jurisdictions require event organizers to sign a hold harmless agreement and post a certificate of insurance, typically $1 million, before issuing a special event permit. Appendix A contains a sample hold harmless agreement from Evanston, IL.

Permitting Requirements

Jurisdictions maintain the following general requirements for planned special events: (1) event restrictions, (2) impact mitigation and traffic control, (3) legal, and (4) funding. As indicated in Table 4-11, the municipal codes of jurisdictions across the Nation specify a wide range of requirements for managing travel for planned special events, all of which become incorporated in the special event permit process. The previous sections highlighted several requirements and associated examples under the first three cited categories. With regard to traffic control, Appendix A contains a Hot Springs, AR checklist of traffic control requirements for street use events using a particular city street. This checklist serves as a traffic management and operations plan for recurring street use events on the cited street, thus permitting traffic management team members to become proficient at efficiently managing traffic for events on the designated route. Appendix A also contains a detailed traffic control resource checklist, complete with equipment specifications, used in Montgomery County, MD and special event directional sign regulations maintained in Marco Island, FL.

Table 4-11. Municipal Code Provisions on Planned Special Events
Provision
Special event definition Conditions for permit requirement Permit restrictions Content of permit application Permit application submission and review deadline Notification of city/town officials Notification of abutting property owners and residents Permit approval criteria Event organizer duties City/town authority to restrict parking and close local roads Hold harmless clause Insurance requirements Recovery of expenses Procedure for appealing a denied permit

Section 12200 of the California Vehicle Code defines a special event monitor as a person who has completed a traffic control program approved by the California Highway Patrol. Use of special event monitors reduces demand on law enforcement staff needed for security detail and highway patrol. Jurisdictions in California require these trained monitors, when the day-of-event training program is available, during permitted special events. For instance, the County of San Diego, CA specifies the following traffic control requirements during planned special events:

Traffic control is to be provided at various locations, such as, narrow road segments, intersections, and starting or ending points.
Only properly trained or certificated personnel (by a training program approved by the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol) are to handle the traffic control responsibilities.
Traffic controllers shall wear orange vests and utilize a "Stop/Slow" paddle.
Advance warning signs shall be placed, well in advance of any personnel and the event, to alert oncoming vehicles of the supplemental traffic control and the event.
Traffic controllers will avoid delays or back up of traffic onto primary County roadways such that "grid-lock" does not happen; waits of more than two minutes are excessive and will not be allowed.
Adjacent driveways to neighboring businesses and residences will not be blocked.

Funding

Public agencies recover costs incurred in providing services during the event operations planning phase and resources on the day-of-event through event organizer fees and other funding mechanisms. Table 4-12 lists special event permit application fees for a select number of jurisdictions across the country. Table 4-13 describes five different approaches used by jurisdictions to obtain cost reimbursement for staff and equipment rental.

Table 4-12. Planned Special Event Permit Application Fees
Location	Permit Fee
Anaheim, CA	$25
Fort Collins, CO	$25
Lancaster, PA	$25
Larimer County, WY	$25
Louisville, KY	$25
Marysville, WA	$25
Stamford, CT	$25
West Palm Beach, FL	$25
Minneapolis, MN	$25 parade; $100 + $0.50/participant for race
Lincoln, NE	$45
Kane County, IL	$50
Marco Island, FL	$50
Palm Beach Gardens, FL	$50 per event day
Ypsilanti, MI	$50–$100
Charlotte County, FL	$87
Virginia Beach, VA	$75–$150
Branson, MO	$100
Clarksville, TN	$100
West Des Moines, IA	$100
West Sacramento, CA	$125
Miami Beach, FL	$250 application fee; $250 permit fee
Mount Pleasant, TX	$250
Pitken County, CO	$275

Table 4-13. Planned Special Event Funding Mechanisms
Funding Mechanism	Comments/Examples
Event organizer pays a deposit with permit application submission.	Applies to events necessitating road closure. Deposit is reimbursed if all road closure requirements are fully complied with ($500 – Larimer County, WY) Requires $2,500 refundable security deposit no later than 30 days in advance (Miami Beach, FL). Requires a $1,000 security deposit, returned if the transportation department determines the roadways are in good or better condition than before the event took place (Kane County, IL). Requires a $25 deposit on each city owned traffic control device used during an event (Golden, CO).
Public agency sends post-event invoice to the event organizer for resources used.	Allows event organizer to be charged for law enforcement, traffic engineering, and public works services. Requires four-hour minimum charge for each public employee engaged by the event organizer (Miami Beach, FL).
Event organizer pays for estimated, required public agency resources before event.	Requires event organizer pre-payment or bond posting before issuing an event permit (Anaheim, CA). Requires event organizer to submit payment for services and equipment two weeks before the event (Miami Beach, FL). Requires event organizer to pay for parking meter rentals ($10 per meter/day for Miami Beach, FL; 50% of the standard fees in Denver, CO) and rental of public parking lots (Ypsilanti, MI requires 20% gross revenue sharing) as applicable.
A charge on each ticket sold is set to recover expenses incurred for providing extraordinary governmental services.	Establishes Ordinance No. 232-11/02 (Walworth County, WI).
Event organizer posts a performance bond.	Covers post-event street cleaning and/or damages to roadway infrastructure.

After an August 2002 Grateful Dead concert attracted 35,000 spectators at an amphitheater in rural Walworth County, WI, and event stakeholders prepared to turn away thousands of expected ticketless spectators, county officials passed an innovative ordinance, Recovery of Expenses Incurred for Providing Extraordinary Governmental Services. Appendix A contains a copy of the cited ordinance, Section 10-28 of the Walworth County Code.

The social and economic benefits yielded by planned special events, in addition to the purpose of select events, result in jurisdictions periodically waiving cost reimbursement requirements even for privately sponsored special events. Table 4-14 lists criteria that planned special events in Louisville, KY must meet for City provision of free services for event operation and management.

Table 4-14. Louisville, KY Criteria for Providing Free Services for a Special Event⁽⁵⁾
Criteria
Ability of the City to provide all or part of requested support services Extent to which the event is economically, socially and culturally beneficial to the community Intended use by the sponsoring organization of any revenue over and above expenditures Impact of the event (positive or negative) on normal commercial activities Extent to which the event contributes toward the promotion of tourism

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