How to Organize a Community Festival for Your Town

Festivals are always fun, however, when you’re in the background planning the whole thing, it can get a bit…
a group of people talking

Festivals are always fun, however, when you’re in the background planning the whole thing, it can get a bit overwhelming. There are a lot of steps to take to bring the festivity together and make it happen. You have to contact a plethora of people and sign many permits before you can set up camp.

Here are some things you have to do to organize a festival for your town.

Apply for formal permits from the community.

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When planning a festival, you’ll want to ensure you have all permits in place for admission, food and liquor vendors, merchandise, and transit authority. These permits will allow you to sell each of the corresponding things in your event without infringing on the law.

You may also need a notarized special event permit, an insurance certificate, tent and canopy permits, and an event map for easy access and public safety. Additionally, you could need animal permits if you have any animals in the event—you may even need to have a local vet present at the event in case an animal is injured.

Require safety officials from the community.

Moreover, you’re going to need to contact your city to volunteer safety officials for the fest. These safety officials will work to help traffic flow, contact police or emergency services, and keep an eye out for any mishaps in the general public.

Hire a food and beverages service.

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You’ll also want to hire food and beverage services to offer attendees meals, drinks, snacks, and alcohol. You can choose local shops and the best vodka for cocktails of the highest standards such as Bloody Marys and Moscow Mules. You can also hire internationally or acquire sponsors for these services. You can make packages for the event attendees which can include a meal, drink, and a souvenir of some sort. For instance, if your event is a beer fest, you can include small beer tasting tickets.

Provide a safety checklist.

There are many codes of safety your vendors and anyone that sets up a tent must abide by. For instance, their tents must be made from fire-retardant materials, there needs to be a fire extinguisher in every booth, there shouldn’t be any flammable liquids stored in a tent or canopy, and electrical cords should be taped down, among other things.

Rent a power generator.

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Another thing you may do is get yourself a containerised generator for your event. You’re going to need power generation for the different booths or tents that can work under any weather type. Containerized generators have bunded fuel tanks, lockable battery isolators, WHS compliance, and 3-way fuel valves so you can connect them to external bulk fuel tanks. Additionally, they are easily transported by road, rail, or ship thanks to their standard 20-foot modular containers, so you can take it everywhere you take your festival.

Contract the city’s services.

When planning a public festival, you’ll want to get the most help you can from the city. They will help provide barricades, towing, trash and recycling bins, cleaning, and even sound equipment. They can also help refuse collection on the premises and provide “No Parking” signs so you can designate parking spaces for the event.

Promote the festival.

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Lastly, all that’s left to do is promote your festival so everyone can be aware of your event. Be sure to use social media, local TV channels, and other means of marketing such as flyers, billboards, and word of mouth. The last thing you want is to coordinate an elaborate event and have only a few people show up. So invest in good marketing strategies that will help you reach your target audience.