Dearborn, MI Special Events & Permits: Park Event Permits (2026)

Chapter 15 of the Dearborn Code of Ordinances governs every park in the city, from Ford Field Park down to the smallest neighborhood green space, and Sec. 15-2 sets the baseline: a permit is the written permission that must be obtained from the director or his designated agent to carry out a given activity in a park, where director means the director of the department of recreation. That permit requirement runs through the whole chapter. Sec. 15-25 bars anyone from bringing in, consuming, or selling alcoholic beverages in a park except under two conditions: a city concessionaire selling under the director's control, or a family or group picnic or function where a permit for such consumption is obtained.

Sec. 15-26 separately requires a camping permit before anyone pitches a tent in a park, and Sec. closed hours. Sec. 15-32 adds that any vendor wanting to sell or display goods in a park, such as a food stand at an organized gathering, also needs a director-issued permit. Enforcement runs to the police department and to city employees designated as ordinance officers or park rangers under Sec. 15-35, who can write violation tickets for any breach of the chapter. Sec. 15-3 gives the director independent authority: on top of criminal penalties, anyone violating the chapter can be ejected from the park, have a permit confiscated, and have park privileges suspended for a period the director sets.

Because Chapter 15 does not list its own fine schedule for these permit sections, violations fall under the Code's general penalty, Sec. 00, imprisonment up to 93 days, or both, with each day a violation continues charged as a separate offense.