Waterfront Place of Assembly Certificate of Operation

You need a special permit called a Place of Assembly (PA) Certificate of Operation if:

• 75 or more people gather indoors
• 200 or more people gather outdoors

This is for events like:

• Religious
• Recreational
• Educational
• Political
• Social
• Eating or drinking

To get a legal Place of Assembly, you must follow Fire and Building Code rules. The Small Business Services Waterfront Permits Unit does the first check. After that, you must renew the certificate every year with the FDNY.