Council sets shorter NY Eve fireworks show
Due to funding reasons, the New Year’s Eve fireworks show on Estero Island will be seven minutes shorter than previous years.
On Monday, the Fort Myers Beach Town Council approved to have Town Manager Don Stilwell execute a contract with current vendor Garden State Fireworks to stage a $20,000 firework display instead of the usual $30,000 firework display on the Beach Pier on Thursday, Dec. 31.
In the future, further Council action may shorten the 2016 Fourth of July fireworks show as well.
“At this point, I would say let’s just do the $20,000 show for New Year’s (Eve) and hold off on the Fourth of July until we see how the fundraising goes,” said Councilwoman Rexann Hosafros.
Town records show that a $20,000 show by Garden State Fireworks would include 18 minutes of intense fireworks with a similar grand finale to past years. The $30,000 display would have involved 25 minutes of intense fireworks with a “finale” mid-show as well as a grand finale.
According to Town records, as of Oct. 8, community and business donations have totaled $11,650 for the New Year’s Eve pyrotechnics. At the Monday meeting, Pete’s Timeout owner and Times Square Alliance Vice President John Lallo donated a check for $3,500 on behalf of the Times Square Alliance for the proposed Fourth of July show in 2016.
Last December, Council reported that the financial burden of setting off traditional fireworks on the Pier would no longer fall solely on taxpayer money, and monetary assistance would be needed to continue the tradition.
Overall costs, which have included $30,000 for the fireworks and contractor, $15,000 for police control, $5,000 for trolley shuttles as well as fees for insurance, cleanup, port-a-potties, Town staff hours and other related costs for past events, total nearly $60,000 each time fireworks are set off on each of the two holidays.
Town officials have unsuccessfully tried to push a sponsorship program to offset costs that total close to $120,000 each event.
Garden State Fireworks has been the producer of spectacular man-built and electronically produced fireworks for years. The New Jersey team is made up of federally licensed pyrotechnic experts who manufacture their own fireworks and are protected by a $5 million liability insurance policy.
If anyone would like to contribute to either fireworks fund, call Bay Oaks at 765-4222.
Chamber pitches fireworks management proposal
The management of fireworks on Fort Myers Beach may not fall under the responsibility of the Town of Fort Myers Beach in the future.
On Monday, Fort Myers Beach Area Chamber of Commerce Chairman David Anderson pitched the idea of the nonprofit group taking the reins.
“The Chamber would like to take on the responsibility as the Semmers did back in years past,” he said.
Anderson stated the Chamber is doing research and could assemble fundraisers on a monthly basis through its Business After Hours events leading up to the fireworks shows. The Business After Hours events are held at a different business on the third Thursday of each month.
“We would like to use that to raise funds throughout the year to handle fireworks,” he said. “We need to be able to sit down with Town staff and come up with an amount that we can work with to make this a go. I think we can make this happen and take the responsibility and expense away from the Town directly. It’s something we are really interested in and have the resources to do.”
Anderson believes if the Chamber information trailer were better centrally located, more businesses and visitors could find out about fundraising and benefits.
“If we were in Times Square, it would allow us to allocate our resources a little better to actually put more resources into the public for the fireworks,” he said.
LPA members voted in
Two new appointments and one reappointment have been made to the Town of Fort Myers Beach Local Planning Agency. Council members held a ballot vote to select three LPA members out of seven candidates.
Bruce Butcher and Suzanne Katt both received four votes and were appointed, while Jane Plummer collected three votes and was reappointed. The other candidates who did not make the cut include Chuck Bodenhafer with two votes, George Clover with one vote, John Kakatsch with one vote and Miffie Greer with zero votes.
Council also appointed and reappointed members to six other Town advisory boards: Anchorage Advisory Committee- Greg Holmes, William Kubieck; Audit Committee- Edward Lombard, James Rodwell and James Steele; Bay Oaks Recreational Campus Advisory Board- Rae Sprole, Tom Myers and David Anderson (all terms extended until further notice); Community Resources Advisory Board- Corky Condon (committee reduced to five members); Marine Resources Task Force- Bill Veach, Mary Rose Spalletta and Tony “Chachi” Ludig (the latter two are new appointees); and Public Safety Committee- Anthony Scopel, Tom Myers and John Kakatsch.