Gary, IN Filming & Production: Street Closures (2026)

Section 36-14 of the Gary Municipal Code requires any filmmaker to follow the city's established procedure for a film permit, submitting all required legal documentation to the Gary Office of Film & Television and paying the nonrefundable $50.00 application fee. When a production needs a street closed to accommodate filming, item (6) of the fee schedule at section 20-1(e-1) adds a $250.00 per block, per day street closure charge on top of the underlying film permit fee, which itself runs $500.00 per location per day for a feature film or $250.00 per location per day for a short film, video, or documentary.

All of these fees, including the street closure charge, are due once the Board of Public Works and Safety approves the request at its regular Wednesday meeting; applications and fees must be filed by 5:00 p.m. Central time the preceding Friday. If a production needs police or fire officers on scene to manage the closed street, the schedule adds a further $50.00 per hour for a police or fire officer and $50.00 per hour for a film office liaison or monitor. A production that cannot wait for the normal weekly cycle can pay a $150.00 urgency permit surcharge to have its request heard within 48 hours of a board meeting.

The film office may negotiate additional fees or discounted rates for board approval, and the schedule notes that fee waivers apply to productions that hire at least 50 local residents.