• A special event is any organized public activity having as its primary purpose entertainment, recreation, and/or education, and which provides a substantial public and community benefit.

A special event permit is needed: 

• for any event which takes place in whole or in part on a public street or public property; or
• occurs on private property and impacts government services on public rights-of ways.

Events held in parks or properties managed by the Leisure Services Department:

• should be coordinated through the Athens-Clarke County Leisure Services Department (706-613-3800). 
• are not required to obtain a special event permit from the Central Services Department if the event is entirely in a property management by the Leisure Services Department.  

The application fee is:

• $25 if application is submitted 60+ days in advance of the date of the event. 
• $150 if application is submitted less than 60 days in advance of the date of the event. 

Additional fees that may be required after the application is approved:

• Festival Zone Fee: $600 
• Beer Garden Fees:
  • $150 per beer garden not exceeding 2,000 square feet (up to two per block are allowed).
  • $300 per beer garden exceeding 2,000 square feet (only one per block is allowed).
• Electrical Fee: Electrical fees are based on the estimated electricity use for your event, which will be determined after review of your application.
• Public Safety Fee: The fee is $60 per hour per Police Officer, with a minimum of 4 hours per Police Officer.The total number of Police Officers required for your event will be determined after review of your application. This fee will be paid directly to the Police Officers assigned to your event and will not be included in your final permit fee.

The approval process:

• The Central Services Department will route your application for review by various ACCGov departments and external agencies. 
• This review normally takes 2 weeks for smaller events and up to 4 weeks for larger events. 
• You may be contacted during this process to meet with staff or to provide additional information.

The following information should be included on the event diagram page depending on the nature of the event:

• Location of street closures 
• Location of stage(s)
• Location of Vendors
• Location of temporary public restroom facilities (port-a-potties) 
• Location of electrical outlets you hope to access for your event 
• Location and size of any beer gardens
• Location of the festival zone
• For parades, runs/walks, bike rides, etc. a written narrative of the routes is also required

Additional documents required for a festival zone are:

1. A list of businesses within one block of the festival zone that you have notified of the event.  
2. A copy of the flyer/handout that you will distribute to participants to notify them of the rules regarding consuming alcohol in the festival zone.  
3. Draft copies of signs that will be posted to designate the festival zone and where they will be posted. 

Full details are in the Festival Zone Approval Requirements document.

Special events on College Square in downtown Athens have the same requirements as any other special event in Athens-Clarke County. There are 3 options for tables when using College Square:

1. Leave the tables as they are at no additional fee. At a minimum, half of the table must remain available for public use.
2. Keep all tables on the square but rearrange them - a refundable deposit of $100 is required for this. It is the event sponsors' responsibility to return the tables back to their original layout on the square at the end of the event.
3. Remove the tables.  Removing and storing the tables is the responsibility of the event sponsor - a refundable deposit of $500 is required for this. ACCGov staff will remove and store the table umbrellas. It is the sponsors' responsibility to return the tables back to their original layout on the square at the end of the event.

Please see the document "Special Events Held on College Square" for further details