James City County, VA Special Events & Permits: Parade Permits (2026)

Section 13-9 of the James City County Code, in chapter 13's traffic article, states that no funeral procession or parade may occupy, march or proceed along any highway in the county except under a permit issued by the governing body, the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized agent. The only exemption written into the section covers the armed forces of the United States and the military forces of the Commonwealth; a National Guard unit or veterans' color guard marching under military orders does not need a county permit, but a civic club, church group, school, or private organizer does.

The section also requires compliance with 'such other regulations as are prescribed by this County Code which may apply,' which in practice pulls in the county's separate rules on sound trucks and loudspeakers at Sec. 13-14, whose subsection (b) expressly carves out 'motor vehicles driven in a duly authorized parade' from the ban on advertising by loudspeaker, so a permitted parade can use amplified sound where an ordinary vehicle could not. Because James City County has no incorporated towns, this permit requirement covers every highway in the county outside the independent city of Williamsburg; a route crossing into Williamsburg needs that city's separate authorization.

Applications go to the Board of Supervisors or its designated agent, and in practice the county administrator's office coordinates with the James City County Police Department, which directs traffic and can require rerouting. The code prints no separate processing fee or lead time for section 13-9 permits.