Gulfport, MS Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)

Section 5-1 of the Code of Ordinances requires the manager of any carnival, circus or street fair to make written application to the mayor and city council before the event can obtain a license or operate. The application must be made on a blank form furnished by the city and must list the number and character of every separate tent, enclosure or place where an admission fee is charged or collected, directly or indirectly, to see or hear a performance, or where anything is exhibited.

Applicants must bind themselves not to show or permit on the grounds any gambling device or any show of immoral character or tendency, a condition written directly into the section rather than left to police discretion after the fact. The application has to be submitted a minimum of 30 days before the scheduled event specifically so the city council has time to act on it; a late filing risks the council simply not reaching the request before the event date. The section traces to Code 1963, § 5-1, and the state law references attached to it point to Miss.

(state regulation of carnivals, circuses and fairs), meaning an operator may owe both a city permit fee and a separate state privilege tax on top of it.