Novi, MI Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)

Sec. 24-2 defines "outdoor assembly" as any event with more than 200 attendants that includes a theatrical exhibition, public show, display, entertainment, festival, amusement, or similar gathering, but exempts events run by a governmental unit on public land, events run by a 501(c)(3)/(4)/(5)/(6)/(8) tax-exempt entity, events held entirely inside a permanently enclosed structure, and events run by homeowner subdivision associations for their own members. Sec. 24-16 requires anyone who sponsors, operates, maintains, conducts, or promotes such an assembly to first apply for and obtain a permit for each event; advertising, promoting, or selling tickets before getting the permit is itself a prohibited act under Sec.

24-3(1). Sec. 24-17 sets the filing deadline at 10 days before the event, in writing, on forms the city clerk prescribes, and Sec. 24-18 lists what the application must contain: the applicant's name and address (and those of all partners, officers, or directors if a business entity applies), a description of the event, proof of site ownership or the owner's consent affidavit, the dates and hours, an attendance estimate with a plan for tracking admissions, and a nonrefundable fee set by council resolution. Sec. 24-19 further requires detailed plans covering police and fire protection, food and water supply, sanitation, medical services, parking, camping facilities, lighting, noise control, cleanup, and insurance and bonding, all reviewed by the city clerk, police chief, and building department before a permit issues.