Fees.
Gulfport Code of Ordinances § 7-253
in effectSec. 7-253. - Fees.
(1) Initial/base permit filing fee. Except as otherwise provided herein, at the time an application is submitted or filed with the permitting division of the city department of urban development, the following nonrefundable fees shall accompany this application and be paid to the city through the permitting division for the issuance of permits herein and associated with the servicing of such permits, inspection of affected areas, and general compliance with this article:
(a) Openings or excavations up to one hundred (100) feet - Two hundred dollars ($200.00); or
(b) Openings or excavations over one hundred (100) feet - Two dollars and twenty-five cents ($2.25) per foot for every foot over one hundred (100) feet plus one hundred dollars ($100.00).
(2) Street/right-of-way temporary closure fee. In addition to any other fees required under this article, permits requiring the temporary closure of any portion of the city's streets or rights-of-way shall be subject to the following fees:
Length of Closure | Application | Inspection
3 days or less | $15.00 | $0.00
4 days through 10 days | 15.00 | 10.00
11 days through 20 days | 15.00 | 20.00
21 days through 30 days | 15.00 | 30.00
31 days through 45 days | 15.00 | 45.00
46 days through 90 days | 15.00 | 50.00 plus $1.00/day beyond 50 days
Closures in excess of ninety (90) days are prohibited.
(3) Exemptions. Any applicant who declares that it is a public agency, a public utility company, or who has a valid franchise agreement with the city or has statutorily granted franchise rights shall be exempt from the fees set forth in subsection (1) provided that the applicant submits along with their application a statement providing the reason for exemption and a nonrefundable fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) for the servicing of such permits, inspection of affected areas, and general compliance with this article. After the initial application, verification of the exemption shall be submitted annually. Any applicant who declares a valid exemption shall provide a written pavement life performance warranty in a form acceptable to the city. The warranty shall provide that in the event that subsurface material or pavement over or within the trench influenced area becomes depressed, broken, or otherwise fails at any time after the excavation (or joint excavation) has been completed, the applicant shall repair or restore such condition pursuant to the procedure set forth in section 7-259. This exemption from fees provided herein does not exempt such person, agency, or entity from compliance with all other provisions of this Ordinance (§ 7-250, et seq.) unless expressly exempted by federal or state law.
(4) Limited application of fees; Agreement to enter into franchise agreement.
(a) Agreement to enter into franchise agreement. A permit applicant, prior to being issued a permit, (referred to as "applicant" in this paragraph (4)) may enter into a written agreement with the city to negotiate and enter into a franchise agreement (referred to as an "agreement to enter" in this ordinance). The term of such an agreement to enter shall not exceed six (6) months from the date of execution thereof. Following approval by the city attorney and city council, the agreement to enter shall be effective upon the last date of approval or signature on behalf of the city by the mayor or his or her designee and by a proper and authorized representative of the applicant.
(b) Effect of agreement to enter. Execution of an "agreement to enter" with the city herein shall serve as the existence of a good faith effort on the part of the applicant to execute a franchise agreement within the six (6) month term thereof. If no franchise agreement is entered into between the applicant and city within the said six (6) month term, the applicant shall not be entitled to operate or conduct any commercial or business venture, enterprise, purpose, or use within, on, over, or under the public areas or ways , streets, property, or rights-of-way that were within the scope of any application(s) issued under this Ordinance unless otherwise specifically exempted under this Ordinance or a party to a valid and then current and effective franchise agreement.
(c) Limited application of certain trenching permit fee(s) toward qualifying franchise fee(s). If an agreement to enter has been timely and properly executed by the applicant and city, the applicant may request that any fees it previously paid to the city in connection with one (1) or more permits under this Ordinance (§ 7-250, et seq.) and which the city actually received and deposited, be applied toward whatever fee the applicant owes or may owe the city under its franchise agreement with the city that was executed in conjunction with its Agreement to Enter. The applicant must submit a written request to the city engineer for application of such permit fee(s) toward monies owed to the city under the applicable franchise agreement. Such a request for application of permit fees must be received by the city engineer or his or her designee within 365 consecutive calendar days of the effective date of the Agreement to Enter, with the first day of such time period to commence on the day following receipt by the city representative. If the last day of this period falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or municipal holiday, the deadline shall extend to the next consecutive day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or municipal holiday. Application of permit fee(s) does not entitle the applicant or anyone else to any monetary value or consideration. If the amount of permit fee(s) exceeds the amount of franchise fee(s) owed to the city during this 365-day period, the city shall be entitled to keep possession and ownership of whatever amount(s) of permit fee(s) exceeds the amount(s) of franchise fee(s) paid by applicant to the city and received by the city during this 365-day period. If the amount of permit fee(s) is less than the amount of franchise fee(s) owed to the city during this 365-day period, the applicant shall still be obligated under its franchise agreement to pay whatever fees are owed the city thereunder after application of the permit fee(s) for that time period. As long as a franchise fee is then owed to the city, and a request for application is timely and properly made, the city shall make application thereof. However, the city shall apply such permit fee(s) toward franchise fee(s) at a time left to the discretion of the city governing authority or its designee, but at no time later than one hundred (100) days following the city's receipt of the applicant's request for application or the city's receipt of the applicable franchise fee(s), whatever is later. Permit fees may only be applied to franchise fees owed to the city by the same applicant or its subsidiary or parent company.
(5) Waivers. In the interest of public convenience and the conservation of public monies and resources, the city, by and through the city engineer or his or her designee, may waive any or all permit fees for work performed by a governmental agency, whether this work is performed by employees of the governmental agency or by a private firm or corporation under contract with the governmental agency. However, such governmental agency or private firm or corporation under contract therewith shall not be relieved of the responsibilities for obtaining a permit for work covered in this Ordinance as well as complying with all other provisions herein not in conflict with state or federal law. For purposes of this Paragraph only, "governmental agency" shall include the city.
(Ord. No. 2644, § 2-4, 9-22-09; Ord. No. 2666, § 5, 2-9-10; Ord. No. 2895, § 2, 4-5-17; Ord. No. 3189, § 2, 10-18-22; Ord. No. 3457, 10-8-24)
Source: City of Gulfport, Mississippi, Code of Ordinances (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/ms/gulfport/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIICOOR_CH7OFMIPR_ARTVISTTRRI-WMA_S7-253FEFetched: 11/1/2026