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

32, the Petaluma Parade and Other Special Events Ordinance, requires anyone sponsoring a parade, athletic event or other special event, defined to include street fairs, art and craft shows, carnivals, block parties, soap box derbies and rallies, on a city street, sidewalk or other city-owned land, to first obtain a special event permit from the chief of police. 28; funeral processions; and parades of thirty or fewer pedestrians confined to sidewalks and crosswalks. A qualifying applicant must file a verified application not less than thirty days nor more than ninety days before the event, accompanied by a nonrefundable fee set by city council resolution, though the chief of police can accept a late filing for good cause tied to free-speech timing.

The application must disclose contact information, the event's purpose, date, time and location, expected number of participants, vehicles, animals and structures to be used, sound amplification equipment, food or beverage sales, and, for parades or events along a route, the assembly point, route, and length. The chief of police must act within ten days and may only deny an application on specified grounds such as false information, traffic congestion the event would cause, interference with emergency services, or scheduling conflicts with another approved event, and must instead impose conditions where the problem can be fixed that way. Block parties must be located in a cul-de-sac and require notice to and approval from fifty percent of residents on the affected street.