Redwood City, CA Special Events & Permits: Block Party Permits (2026)

A "block party" is a resident-sponsored event, festival, celebration, or concert confined to one City block or intersection, at least two-thirds residentially zoned, run by the owners, residents, or tenants themselves and not for profit or commercial advertising (Sec. 1). Sec. 2 makes it unlawful to organize, promote, manage, or induce participation in any temporary street closure, including a block party, without first obtaining the Chief of Police's permit, and unlawful for anyone to violate the permit's terms or interfere with the closure once it is underway.

The application must identify every sponsoring resident or organization, the closure dates and hours, the block or intersection, expected attendance, whether sound amplification will be used, and whether food, drink, or solicited donations will be involved (Sec. 3(A)), and must be filed at least 10 days before the event (Sec. 4); late filing is grounds for denial. Applicants provide and remove their own barricades and warning devices and must clean up all resulting trash (Sec. 5), and must agree to indemnify and hold the City harmless from claims arising out of the closure (Sec.

6). Sec. 7(A) requires payment of a fee, set by City Council resolution, to cover the City's cost of providing the closure. The Chief of Police issues the block party permit only after finding the closure will not substantially disrupt traffic, strain police staffing, or interfere with fire, ambulance, or other emergency access, and only after a majority of the owners, residents, or tenants fronting the closed street give written consent (Sec. 10(A)).