New Orleans Increases Patrols to Enforce Mardi Gras Parade Route Rules
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The New Orleans city council is enforcing a set of rules this Mardi Gras season, limiting the items spectators can set up before parades. The rules, introduced in 2024, ban larger equipment from the parade route and prohibit items such as tents, ladders, and tarps from being set up more than four hours before a parade. This year, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office will conduct patrols around four hours before the start of each parade, focusing on the enforcement of these rules.
Mardi Gras Parade-goers Met with Strict Rule Enforcement
Hours before the initial grand Uptown Mardi Gras parade, sheriff’s deputies enforced new city rules on St. Charles Avenue’s neutral ground, causing disappointment among early paradegoers. The newly implemented rules aim to regulate parade equipment like tents and viewing platforms, which aren’t allowed four hours prior to the parade.
One disgruntled parade-goer, who chose to remain anonymous, criticised this enforcement, arguing that canopies are not problematic. Others, however, appreciated the clarity brought by the new rules, particularly the permission to place chairs on the routes four hours in advance. This permission assists in marking one’s spot, thus preventing common disputes over space.
Aubry Miller described the past chaos resulting from confusion over spot claims, saying past rule enforcement caused people to fight over spots. In 2023, social media was filled with images of mega-ladders and tarps set up hours before parades. This act of reserving a spot started with the spray-painted phrase “Krewe of Chad” in 2013 and has now become a common practice.
Parade-route rules experienced a crackdown in 2024 under former Mayor LaToya Cantrell. The amended rules prohibited larger equipment and even allowed for the city to dispose of such items. The rules also included restrictions on ladder size and placement, as well as bans on confetti cannons.
Despite these rules, officials indicated a laxer approach focusing on security rather than quality-of-life issues during Carnival. This year, however, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office intends to conduct patrols around four hours before the first parade. This change reflects a shift from their prior focus on security to enforcing city ordinances banning tents and tarps.
However, there have been mixed messages regarding this enforcement push. Council President JP Morrell suggests enforcement may be “spotty”, highlighting financial constraints and encouraging paradegoers to police each other. Despite these statements, the sheriff’s office was proactive on Friday, with parade-goer Luke Kay expressing support for the enforcement.
Another attendee, Richard Lammons, expressed confusion over the new rules, stating that everyone gets along and there is enough space for all. Despite the controversy, he complied, packing up his small purple pop-up canopy.
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