Start planning now for National Night Out (NNO), which is set to occur on Tuesday, August 4. Now is the time to start making preparations for the night that brings neighbors together around the country. Use the following checklist to begin your planning your NNO event:

Register your NNO event. There is an online process to register your NNO event and apply to close your street: www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/nno. OR you can call 311 to register your event and apply for street closure. To close your street, apply by July 21. You need permission from 75% of your neighbors to be approved for street closure. Please have their names and addresses with you when you apply. (You do not need their signatures.

Want a police officer, firefighter, or canine officer and dog to visit your event? You can make the request when you register or by calling 311 to have your event added to the waiting list.

Make rain plans. Decide if your event will go forward if it rains or will be rescheduled. If you apply to close your street, you'll have a rain date of Wednesday, August 5, unless you decline it during the application. If you don't close your street, you can choose any rain date that works for your group.

If this is your first time holding an NNO event, you can request a start-up kit. There is a limited supply of free NNO start-up kits for blocks holding NNO events for the first time. They contain plates, cups, plastic utensils, napkins, etc. for 50. If your block is new to NNO this year, call 612-673-2956 to see if a kit is available.

Each event organizer will receive Mystery Point Passes for Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America and vouchers (each good for 2 tickets) for Minnesota Twins games to use as door prizes. Each Mystery Point Pass is worth a single ride, a day of rides, or a whole season of rides. If you register your NNO event by July 14, you will be entered into a drawing for other door prizes donated by Minneapolis businesses.