Sarasota County, FL Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- License fee
- $5,000 per festival day
- Bond required
- $100,000
- Governing law
- SCC §§ 86-51 to 86-55
- Adopted
- Ord. No. 72-024 (1972)
- Pre-issuance step
- Health Department facility sign-off
Summary
Anyone staging an outdoor music festival with paid admission in Sarasota County's unincorporated area needs a county license under Code of Ordinances § 86-52. The fee runs $5,000 per day the festival continues, and the promoter must post a $100,000 bond before the Board of County Commissioners approves the license.
A Music Festival is defined to mean an event, the primary purpose of which is the presentation of a music concert wherein both the performers and the audience or the audience alone is located out-of-doors, and for which an admission payment, donation or contribution must be made in order to gain admittance.
The license fee for the holding of such a Music Festival shall be $5,000.00 per day for each day that the said Music Festival shall continue. Each applicant for a license shall be required to furnish a bond in the amount of $100,000.00 in a form acceptable to the Board of County Commissioners of Sarasota County, Florida, to cover possible damage to public and/or private property or expenses of the County of Sarasota arising out of the holding of such Music Festival.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 98).
Full Breakdown
Sarasota County Code Chapter 86, Article II, Division 2 has regulated outdoor music festivals since Ordinance No. 72-024 took effect on May 16, 1972, and the sections remain codified today. Section 86-51 defines a Music Festival as an event whose primary purpose is a music concert held outdoors, either with the performers, the audience, or both outside, where attendees must pay an admission, donation, or contribution to get in. 00, in a form the Board of County Commissioners accepts, to cover damage to public or private property or expenses the County incurs because of the event.
Section 86-53 adds prerequisites before the license issues: the applicant must show the appropriate County agency that festival facilities satisfy Sarasota County Health Department requirements and every other applicable County agency, and must sign an agreement binding every patron, paying or not, to a printed contract at least three inches by five inches consenting to a search for narcotics, barbiturates, or hallucinogens and to confiscation of anything held unlawfully. Section 86-54 makes any violation of the division punishable as provided by Laws of Florida Chapter 69-234, and Section 86-55 is a standard severability clause protecting the remaining sections if one is struck down.
Violations & Fines
Violating any part of the Music Festival division is punishable as provided by Laws of Florida Chapter 69-234, per § 86-54. Holding a festival without the required $5,000-per-day license or without posting the $100,000.00 bond required by § 86-52 exposes the promoter to that penalty, and the County can also deny or withhold the license until the Health Department sign-off and patron search-and-seizure ticket contract required by § 86-53 are in place.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a small neighborhood street fair with a band need this license?
How much does a Sarasota County music festival license cost?
What must patrons agree to before entering?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sarasota County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Sarasota County to another location·View the Florida special events & permits overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.