Beaufort County, SC Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)

Article III, Outdoor Public Assemblies, applies to outdoor musical concerts, fairs, carnivals, mechanical amusement rides, and any tent over 200 square feet expected to draw 200 or more people at once, but exempts places of personal residence under § 10-58. Section 10-61 requires the sponsor, owner, agent or promoter to obtain a special event permit from the building inspection department and post it conspicuously at the site; the permit expires at the end of the function and cannot exceed 30 days, though the building official, with the sheriff's department's approval, may grant five-day extensions on written request.

Section 10-65 requires the sponsor to arrange at least two paid law enforcement officers for every 1,000 expected attendees, with funds escrowed with the county treasurer in advance (waived for religious, academic or tax-deductible charitable events), notify the emergency service department of the event's time and location, and keep an unobstructed path for emergency vehicles. Section 10-66 requires portable toilets, three per 1,000 male attendees and three per 1,000 female attendees, at least two if under 1,000 people, and makes the sponsor responsible for hauling all solid waste to the county landfill immediately after the event.

Section 10-64 bars tents within 50 feet of a public right-of-way and requires clearing combustible brush and grass near tents. where the site is out of residential hearing range. 00 each under § 10-62.