The Punta Gorda Development Review Committee approved a permit on Nov. 7, 2025, allowing the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. parade to proceed on Jan. 19, 2026, provided the organizers coordinate road closures with Public Works and confirm staging permissions.

Carl Venge, principal planner, called the meeting to order and introduced the permit review. A staff member told the applicant, “Just that they get with public works for the road closures and then, police services as usual in the past will be in kind,” and said the applicant should contact Dave Myers in Public Works about road closures.

Cheryl Lavecchio, general secretary for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King parade and rally events, confirmed logistics and contact information. Lavecchio said, “the people that are walking need to be there at 10 and the floats need to be there at 9,” and confirmed, “And the parade starts at 11:00.” She provided an email for the record: lavecchio1218@gmail.com; the application also listed mhsctc.mok@gmail.com for Zelda Smith.

Staff told the applicant she should obtain a written letter from the event center if the parade intends to use its parking for setup. A staff member said, “And you also need probably need should get a letter from them saying you're allowed to use their property,” and advised that if the event center is unavailable, Public Works would suggest alternate staging or parking areas previously used.

A committee member moved to approve permit 25-195855 for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. parade on Jan. 19, 2026, with additional comments; another committee member seconded. The motion passed by voice vote. The motion and approval included the staff conditions described above; vote counts were not specified in the record.

The committee advised the applicant to submit any required documentation (the event-center permission letter, if needed) to the office where the application was filed (code enforcement).