Birmingham, AL Special Events & Permits: Block Party Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Routine closure authority
- city council
- Emergency closure authority
- police chief or fire chief
- Construction-hazard closure
- city engineer
- Legal standard
- necessary for public health/safety
- Required marking
- barricades, lights, or signs
- Penalty for entering closure
- up to $500 fine / 6 months
Summary
Birmingham has no separate "block party permit" form: closing a public street for an event runs through the city council's general authority to shut down a public way for safety or health reasons. Police, fire and the city engineer can also close a street on their own in an emergency or during construction.
The council may, whenever it deems necessary for the protection of health, or for the safety of persons or property, temporarily close any public way or portion thereof against entry or passage of persons and vehicles thereon, and, in case of an emergency of fire or other calamity, the chief of police or chief of the fire department may temporarily close any public way or portion thereof against any entry or passage when, in his or her judgment, the closure is necessary for the safety of persons or property... It shall be unlawful for any person to enter or pass or to cause or allow any vehicle to enter or pass upon any such closed area of public way when warned of the closure either verbally or by means of barricade, light, sign or other warning device or structure.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 3).
Full Breakdown
City Code § 4-5-14 gives the city council power to "temporarily close any public way or portion thereof against entry or passage of persons and vehicles thereon" whenever it "deems necessary for the protection of health, or for the safety of persons or property." That is the same authority the city relies on for approving a resident's request to close a residential block for a party, festival or similar gathering; the Code does not carve out a distinct "block party" application, fee schedule or notice period the way it does for an outdoor cafe permit.
The same section gives two other officials independent closure power outside the council process: the chief of police or the chief of the fire department may close a street during "an emergency of fire or other calamity" when closure is necessary for safety, and the city engineer may close a street that is "under construction or repair or be dangerous or in need of repair." Whoever orders the closure can mark it with barricades, lights, signs or other warning devices.
Once a closure is posted, § 4-5-14 makes it "unlawful for any person to enter or pass or to cause or allow any vehicle to enter or pass upon any such closed area" after being warned verbally or by a barricade, light or sign, and it is likewise unlawful to drive against, knock down, tamper with or remove any barricade or warning device the city put up.
Violations & Fines
Entering or driving into a street the council, police chief, fire chief or city engineer has closed under § 4-5-14, after being warned by a person, barricade, light or sign, is a misdemeanor under the Code's general penalty, § 1-1-6: a fine up to $500.00, up to six months in jail, or both. Damaging, moving or tampering with the barricades or warning signs themselves is a separate violation of the same section.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Birmingham have a specific block party permit application?
Who besides the council can close a Birmingham street?
What happens if I drive around a barricade into a closed block party street?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Birmingham
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