The Pearl Street Mall is a vital gateway to the commercial retail vibrancy in our downtown. The purpose of Mall Permits and Leases (B.R.C. 4-11) is to promote the public interest by enhancing the attractiveness of the mall environment; encouraging commercial activity and entertainment that adds charm, vitality, diversity and good design to the mall area; providing reasonable time, place and manner restrictions on constitutionally protected activities so that they may flourish without detracting from the purpose of the mall as a commercial forum and a means of access to businesses on the mall; and limiting private development on the mall to those proposals of the highest quality that advance these purposes. When considering an application for a Special Event Permit on the Pearl Street Mall for events focused on merchandise sales (two or more blocks), the city of Boulder will apply the following criteria:
Event Theme
The Special Event must support a theme, whether it is local or regional fine arts, hand-crafted items, or any similar event theme.
Juried Art
The arts and crafts for sale must be juried by professionals from the field of works presented. The applicant for a Special Event Permit must provide their written jury selection criteria, complete with a list of juror names and their professional qualifications. The members of the jury in addition to the selection criteria, including minimum standards of artistic quality and unique products, will be scrutinized for merit and consistency to the event theme by a city-selected committee, composed of members of the Downtown Management Commission and Boulder Arts Commission. Merchandise that is mass-produced and not juried (not to exceed one booth per block) will be considered only if it is consistent with the event theme, supports a family-based activity, or is a major financial sponsor of the nonprofit organization sponsoring the special event application.
Non-profit
Special Event means an educational or cultural event of community-wide interest, including, without limitation, events involving sales, the primary purpose of which is not for profit, which is consistent with the legislative intent of this chapter, and which is scheduled and approved by the city manager. (B.R.C. 4-11)
Scheduling
All special events on the Pearl Street Mall are limited to every other weekend, allowing a minimum 10-day rest period between events. Special events on the Mall will not be considered for dates coinciding with events such as CU commencement, CU move-in, CU Family Weekend, CU Homecoming, or any other large community event.
Authenticity
All art offered for sale must be original art produced by the juried artists, but can also include the artist’s original limited editions. Only original artwork and limited edition prints may be displayed and offered for sale. In keeping with the City of Boulder values, the City of Boulder does not accept for display: a) messaging that is intolerant to racial, ethnic, gender or sexual identities; and b) any messaging that violates City of Boulder law or policy.
If Approved
If approved: The location for each vendor will be reviewed by The City of Boulder so as not to directly compete with Pearl Street Mall retail stores. Each artist must provide their own tent with a skirted or cloth covered table. Vendor tents having side walls are preferred on the north section of the 1300 block of Pearl Street Mall, with open sides and backs on the south side of the 1300 block. Any merchandise created in a medium not juried into the show will be asked to be removed from the display. The City of Boulder reserves the right to remove any exhibitor who is not in compliance with the above-stated rules and eligibility. The City of Boulder reserves all rights to accept or refuse any application, participation by any individual artist, or display of any particular work of art for any reason and at any point during the application process or during the scheduled event