Lexington, KY Special Events & Permits: Parade Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit authority
- police chief, with fire chief concurrence
- Application needs
- day, hour, route, participant count
- Participant cap rule
- chief cannot reduce requested headcount
- Exemption
- funeral processions not covered
- Penalty
- $10 to $100 upon conviction
- Governing law
- LFUCG Code of Ordinances § 18-29
Summary
Any parade or procession on a Lexington-Fayette public street needs a special license from the police chief before it can happen, under LFUCG Code § 18-29. The chief must approve after finding, with the fire chief and traffic engineering director, that the event won't unduly disturb the public's use of the streets, though he cannot cut the number of participants below what the applicant requested.
No parade or procession upon any public street or way in the urban county shall be permitted unless a special license therefor shall first be obtained from the police chief. A "parade" or "procession" is hereby defined as a march in formation, proceeding in an ordered and close file as a collective body of persons on the urban county streets or public ways. Funeral processions are not covered by this section. ... Any person violating any provision of this section shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than ten dollars ($10.00) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100.00).
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Republication | Zoning Ordinance: Republication).
Full Breakdown
Section 18-29 defines a regulated 'parade' or 'procession' narrowly: a march in formation, proceeding in an ordered and close file as a collective body of persons on the urban county's streets or public ways. Funeral processions are carved out entirely and need no license under this section. Anyone else planning to march needs a written application to the police chief specifying the day and hour requested, the exact route, and the approximate number of participants. The chief investigates the request and, working with the fire chief and the director of the division of traffic engineering, decides whether allowing the parade would unduly disturb the public's use of city streets.
If it wouldn't, or if conditions on time, place or manner can avoid disturbance, the chief 'must issue' the license; the ordinance strips the chief of any discretion to shrink the number of participants below what was applied for, though other conditions can still be attached. The resulting license has to be in writing and must specify the approved day, hour, route and headcount cap, which then binds the organizers. A related section, § 18-126, lets the police chief post temporary no-parking signs along the approved parade route and makes it unlawful to park or leave a vehicle in violation of those signs once posted.
Violations & Fines
Holding an unlicensed parade or procession on a public street, or deviating from the licensed route, day, hour or approved participant count, violates § 18-29 and draws a fine of $10 to $100 upon conviction: a self-contained penalty scale separate from the chapter-wide $25-to-$200 table used for most other traffic violations. Vehicles parked along a posted parade route in violation of temporary no-parking signs under § 18-126 are also unlawful.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to hold a parade in Lexington?
What has to be in the parade permit application?
Can the police chief reduce how many people can march?
Are funeral processions covered by this permit rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lexington
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