Spectators lined Main Street on Saturday, July 4, as the Ocean Park Association's annual Fourth of July Parade marched north for the first time in its 19-year history.

The parade kicked off at 9:30 a.m. at Marine Street and traveled north to Pico Boulevard, reversing the traditional southbound route to connect with a new city-sponsored after-party at Tongva Park. This year's theme marked the 100th anniversary of Route 66 and the nation's 250th birthday.

New sponsor fills city funding gap

The City of Santa Monica cut its $15,000 in discretionary funding for the parade in 2025. This year, the event gained its first corporate sponsor: UCLA. The parade operates through the OPA, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and mostly breaks even. Participants pay a few hundred dollars each to walk, march, or roll.

Jeff Jarow, who co-founded the OPA and started the parade in 2007 with seven fellow members, led the organizing effort again. Chris Morgan built the OPA float, and Patty Tann handled check-in and accounting.

"It's Mayberry," Jarow told the Santa Monica Sun. "I always say it's the one day a year when everybody in Santa Monica is smiling at each other."

Jarow remains the only original organizer still running the event. He starts planning each February and spends four to five months on permits, logistics, and fundraising, all without pay. At the very first parade, he drove a bright orange Kubota tractor pulling a 40-foot flatbed trailer that ripped reflector buttons out of the street. He still keeps one of those broken reflectors framed.

The parade has drawn 12,000 to 15,000 spectators and about 1,500 participants in recent years, according to a Santa Monica Sun profile of Jarow. No official 2026 attendance estimate has been released.

After the parade, a free celebration called Pulse in the Park ran at Tongva Park from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., with live entertainment, food trucks, family activities, and a beer garden.

What's next

The Ocean Park Association's next monthly meeting is Monday, July 13, at 6 p.m. at the Ocean Park Library. Guest speakers include State Senate candidate John Erickson and a discussion about a potential Farmers Market move onto Main Street, according to the OPA newsletter. Memberships run $20 per year, or $10 at a reduced rate.

Upcoming in Santa Monica:

• Wednesday, July 8: Rewilding Santa Monica: Dune Restoration Update, free, 6–7 p.m., Ocean Park Branch Library, 2601 Main Street.
• Friday, July 10: Golden Hour World Cup Gathering, free, 2–10 p.m., Third Street Promenade.
• Friday, July 10: Sunset Swim, $10 adults/$5 seniors, 6–9 p.m., Annenberg Community Beach House, 415 Pacific Coast Highway.