Gilroy, CA Special Events & Permits: Parade Permits (2026)

Chapter 13A requires a permit from the Gilroy Police Department before anyone conducts or sponsors a meeting, concert, live music event, assembly, parade or procession, or uses a sound-amplifying system, on any street, alley, park or other public or private ground in the city (§ 13A.1). The organizer who heads the event must carry the permit, and fees are set by council resolution.

Applications go to the police department 30 to 60 days before the event and must include the organizer's contact information, the exact dates and duration, the route or location, expected crowd and vehicle counts, start and end times, and sanitation and parking plans; parades additionally must state which streets will be used for staging and whether the parade will occupy the full street width (§ 13A.3). The department must act within five days and, if it denies the permit, must mail written reasons within five days of the decision (§ 13A.6). A denied applicant can appeal to the city administrator and then to the city council (§ 13A.7).

The department will deny or condition a permit if the event would substantially interrupt traffic, divert too many officers from normal patrol, interfere with fire or ambulance access, unduly burden nearby schools, hospitals or churches, or is reasonably likely to cause injury or provoke disorder (§ 13A.4). Funeral processions, school-supervised activities, government agencies, and quiet in-property sound systems are exempt (§ 13A.2).