Council authorizes up to $15,000 for July 4 parade safety on trial basis

Enumclaw’s City Council approved a one-time allocation of up to $15,000 to support safety measures for the July 4 parade after hearing logistical and security concerns from staff and the Chamber of Commerce.

Council member Martineau, who presented the item after a meeting with EPD, city event planners, city shops and the Chamber, said the request addressed larger crowds expected for America's 250th celebrations and strains on existing police capacity. Martineau described the request as a per-parade estimate: “The request is for funding of safety of $15,000 per parade, which includes $8,000 to go towards temporary barriers to put up, and the balance of the 15 for each parade is to hire additional staffing,” he said.

Staff explained initial rental quotes, deployment logistics (3–4 days to deploy, potential street closures while barricades are in place), options to purchase lighter plastic barriers and the trade-offs around parking impacts for downtown businesses. Chamber and business representatives flagged the need for clearer advance coordination and cautioned about downtown parking disruption.

Council amended the original two-parade $30,000 request to authorize up to $15,000 for the July 4 parade on a trial basis; the amendment passed and the final motion passed by a 5–1 vote. Staff were directed to coordinate logistics with the Chamber, police department and public works and to report back after the trial deployment.

Council members emphasized that rental deployment and staffing would drive final costs and that staff would return with logistics and any recommendation on whether purchasing equipment for future events would be more cost-effective.