BY ANNA MANESS
City Council simplifies block party permits The city of Georgetown gave final approval Oct. 8 to an update to its block party permit application that aims to make the process more convenient. Current situation At a Sept. 24 City Council meeting, Allyson Iiams, Georgetown’s special events and marketing coordinator, presented the update. Iiams proposed separating block party permits from special event permits, since the two currently have the same process but differ in scale. Right now, permit applicants for both events are required to submit a $1 million insurance policy, an event site plan, a traffic control plan and a $100 per- mit fee, according to the presentation. In the past year, no neighborhood block parties went through the process, Iiams said. Previously, the city would see an average of 10 applications each year.
Water rebate program applications accepted In an effort to encourage conservation, the city budgeted $500,000 for water rebates in fiscal year 2024-25. Water customers could qualify for up to $5,000 in combined rebates—a recent increase approved by city council for this
The conditions Some of the changes to the block party permitting process include:
A $50 application fee
Creating a separate application and guidebook for block party permits
Signature collection from 50% of residents on the street*
fiscal year. The details
A simplified street closure form with templates preapproved by a city traffic engineer Removing additional insurance requirements, unless the block party has animals, bounce houses, amplified sound, floats, a parade or other add-ons Requiring the applicant to rent street barricades and place a vehicle outside the barricades
Services must be completed on or after Oct. 1 to be eligible. Rebates ranging from $25-$3,000 are available for a variety of projects, including conducting an irriga- tion inspection, installing a pool cover, harvesting rainwater and landscaping with native plants. More information about the water
*IF A PROPERTY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS A RENTAL, THE SIGNATURE APPROVING THE BLOCK PARTY EVENT CAN BE SIGNED BY THE OCCUPANT IN PLACE OF THE OWNER.
rebate program can be found at www.georgetowntexas.gov/water.
SOURCE: CITY OF GEORGETOWN/COMMUNITY IMPACT
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GEORGETOWN EDITION
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