Spotsylvania County, VA Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)

Spotsylvania County Code Article II of Chapter 3 requires a special entertainment permit for any musical or entertainment festival held in open spaces in the unincorporated county. The application goes to the county administrator in duplicate at least 21 days before the festival date, and a copy is mailed by certified mail to every member of the Board of Supervisors the same day it is filed. Sec. 3-48 lists the conditions the Board reviews before it will issue a permit: a copy of the admission ticket showing date, time, and expected attendance; the promoters' names and addresses and financial backing; the property owner's name and the applicant's interest in the site; sanitation, garbage, and sewage disposal plans approved by the county health officer; food, water, and lodging plans also approved by the health officer; a medical-facilities plan approved by the health officer; a parking and traffic-control plan approved by the sheriff; a fire-protection plan approved by the area forester; disclosure of any outdoor lighting and shielding to prevent glow beyond the property; a statement that no music will be audible beyond the festival property; and written permission for county officials or law-enforcement officers to inspect the property at any time.

The Board must act on a completed application within ten days, either issuing the permit in writing or mailing a written denial stating its reasons, and it may revoke a permit for noncompliance. Separate operating rules cap live music or entertainment at eight cumulative hours in any 24-hour period, measured from the first performance, and bar anyone under 18 from attending unless accompanied by a parent or guardian who stays with them throughout. 2-1200 and is construed liberally in favor of the public health, safety and welfare purposes it states.