Plainfield, NJ Special Events & Permits: Parade Permits (2026)

Section 10:8-5 is the parade rule. Subsection (a) bars anyone from engaging in, participating in, aiding, forming or starting a parade without the license that § 9:9-2 requires. Subsection (b) bars a parade that breaks any regulation in § 9:9-11. The City Council enacts these rules, and the License Bureau under the City Clerk handles the paperwork.

The licensing machinery sits in Article 9 of Chapter 9, titled Public Entertainment/Special Events. Section 9:9-3 sets filing deadlines with the License Bureau: not less than three days ahead for a public entertainment license and not less than forty-five days ahead for a special event license. The code's definition of special event lists carnivals, circuses, menageries, motion pictures and outdoor festivals and tent shows, and the definition of public entertainment includes outdoor meetings open to the public. Neither definition names parades, so the code does not say which of the two licenses a parade organizer receives. Confirm the category with the License Bureau before counting days.

An application under § 9:9-4 must state the applicant's name and address, the time, the place, the character of the event, admission charges and the disposition of funds. Where the License Bureau deems it necessary, § 9:9-6 requires public liability insurance of not less than $1,000,000 per person and $500,000 per accident, property damage coverage of not less than $1,000,000 and a $1,000,000 cash or surety bond against damage to City streets and property. The fee schedule is in Article 17 of Chapter 9, and § 9:9-7 exempts nonprofit charitable and religious groups that apply all proceeds to their charitable or religious purposes.

Route control is explicit in § 9:9-11(g): parades and similar entertainments cannot travel the streets to or from the event site except on a route designated by the Police and License Divisions and approved by the Mayor. Under § 9:9-11(f) the licensee cannot run loudspeakers or amplifying devices in a way that disturbs residents near the premises.