Washington County, MD Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)

Under Code of Public Local Laws § 10-501(c), an "Entertainment Event" is any event organized primarily to entertain or amuse people, held on public or private property within unincorporated Washington County, where expected attendance including participants and spectators exceeds 250 people. Subsection (c)(2) specifically enumerates fairs, carnivals, and bonanzas as entertainment events alongside parades and concerts, so a street fair or carnival midway falls squarely within the definition once it crosses the attendance line. Section 10-502 then requires any individual, corporation, partnership, association, or other public or private entity to obtain a Special Event permit before holding the fair or carnival.

The permit's application requirements, fees, review process, and appeal procedures are set by County Commissioners regulation under § 10-503 rather than spelled out as dollar amounts in the code itself, and § 10-503(6) lets the Board exempt additional event types by regulation. Section 10-504's exceptions are narrow and generally do not cover a public street fair: they reach school-sponsored events on Board of Education property, events at private golf or recreational facilities operating within normal capacity, events fully enclosed in a permanent structure like a gymnasium or auditorium, certain athletic league use of public fields with Parks and Recreation permission, and events the County Commissioners themselves sponsor outright.

A fair or carnival that also closes or reroutes a road, or needs elevated law enforcement or emergency staffing, is independently captured as an "Event Requiring Assistance" under § 10-501(d), which triggers the permit requirement even if an exception in § 10-504 would otherwise apply.