Prince William County, VA Special Events & Permits: Parade Permits (2026)

Sec. 17-29 states plainly that "public meetings or parades shall not be held within parks, without the written permission of the County Executive or his/her designee," making written approval a precondition for any organized gathering or procession inside a county park, including rallies, marches, religious gatherings or civic demonstrations that use park grounds as a venue or route. The section traces to Sec. 2-26 of the 1965 Code and was carried forward by Ord. No. 12-27 in 2012, so the permission requirement for meetings and parades in parks has been part of county law for decades.

Because the rule sits in Chapter 17, it applies specifically to county park property, distinct from the facility-reservation permit in Sec. 17-20 for booking a pavilion, and from any separate permitting a county or state agency might require for a parade route on public streets outside park boundaries. Sec. 17-4 sets the default Chapter 17 penalty at a Class 4 misdemeanor for a violation not otherwise specified, and authorizes ejection from the park regardless of any criminal charge, so organizers who proceed with an unpermitted meeting or parade inside a park risk both a misdemeanor citation and being removed from the grounds mid-event.

Related Chapter 17 sections that commonly intersect with a park gathering include Sec. 17-30, requiring permission for loudspeakers or amplified sound at the event, and Sec. 17-27, which bars unlicensed sales or solicitation at the gathering absent County authorization.