City officials should consider adding restrictions on parades in downtown Lawrence.

It’s time for Lawrence city officials to take a serious look at the community’s policy on allowing marches, parades or demonstrations on Massachusetts Street downtown.

There has been a proliferation of marches in recent years, and it now is to the point that just about anyone supporting a cause can put together a group of people and stage a parade from Seventh Street to 11th Street and then hold some kind of rally in South Park.

Such demonstrations tie up traffic and cause other problems. Where should the line be drawn on who, or what organizations, can stage a public display in support of their program or political belief? If it’s all right for one organization to stage a parade, what is to prevent someone else with a differing viewpoint to put together their own rally?

Many in Lawrence are proud to look upon the community as being open-minded about a wide range of viewpoints, but this can be carried to the extreme. It seems to have reached this point with the ever-increasing number of downtown parades.

It’s far better to allow people to stage their efforts in one of the city’s parks rather than to tie up traffic and create problems for motorists and businesses along the community’s main commercial avenue.

The city’s streets shouldn’t be looked upon as a free and convenient place to make political statements.