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

Section 4260 defines a parade broadly as any parade, march, procession or similar display on a street, road, highway, alley or park in Lakewood. Before anyone may organize, start, aid or participate in organizing one, Section 4260.1 requires a registration statement filed with the City Clerk that discloses the organizer's name, address and phone number; the sponsoring organization's headquarters and responsible officers, if any; the parade chairman; the date, route, starting and ending points; the approximate number of people, animals and vehicles involved and their type; the start and finish times; whether the parade will use the full or partial street width; the location of any staging area; and the assembly time.

A parade cannot use a business district as defined by the state Motor Vehicle Code, a street on the city's select system, or a state highway unless the City Council issues a separate permit under Section 4260.2. The Council can only issue that permit if it finds the parade will not unreasonably disrupt traffic, will not require diverting so many officers that normal police protection suffers, will not interfere with fire, police or ambulance access to the assembly area, and is scheduled to move from start to finish without unreasonable delay. As an alternative to a permit, Section 4260.3 lets the Council instead temporarily close the affected street. Section 4260.4 exempts any parade conducted or sponsored by the City or the State from the whole registration and permit scheme.