Bessemer, AL Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Encroachment Permits (2026)

Section 94-171 opens Article VI of Chapter 94, the article the Code titles 'Obstructions,' and it states the baseline rule for using any part of a public street, sidewalk or other public way for something other than travel: get a permit from the chief of police first. The requirement is written broadly, covering any obstruction that would 'prevent the free passage of persons,' which in practice reaches things like construction staging, temporary fencing or sidewalk seating that blocks pedestrian travel, not just one named activity.

It sits apart from two other Chapter 94 permitting tracks: the sidewalk-construction permit in section 94-121, issued by the city engineer for building or replacing a sidewalk itself, and the driveway-construction permit in section 94-147, issued by the engineering department for cutting a driveway across a sidewalk. Section 94-171's permit instead runs through the police department, fitting the article's public-safety framing, since a blocked sidewalk is treated first as a hazard to the travelling public. The section traces to Code 1973 § 21-62, so this police-permit structure predates the current codification.

Notably, the very next section, 94-172, gives no permit option at all for showcases and advertising devices on a sidewalk, which shows a police permit under section 94-171 is available only for obstructions not already flatly prohibited elsewhere in the article.