OT Board Passes on Pyrotechnics
The proposal (presented by yours truly in the guise of my other job working for OCBA) was to contract for an amazing, fantastic fireworks display (I might be a little biased) on Wednesday, July 1st. You can read the full proposal here, but the gist was that all the other days around the 4th (2nd, 3rd, and 5th to be exact) were spoken for and the only way we could pull off bringing fireworks back to Ocracoke in 2015 was to have our show on the 1st. Also, it would cost $31,000.00 of Occupancy Tax funds.
OT board chair Frank Brown commented that it was "too much money." Board member Trudy Austin, who supports bringing fireworks back, said she wants to see them happen on the actual 4th, not the 1st.
Discussion ensued. Some expressed support for fireworks on the 1st this year, some want fireworks on the 4th next year, some think it's a huge waste of money, some think they speak for everyone even when people in the room openly disagree with them, some are frustrated that this same conversation comes up every spring. At the risk of over-generalizing, for the most part retail business owners want to boost their lagging July sales and think the increase in sales tax revenues will more than make up for the pyrotechnic price tag, and lodging businesses (who are mostly full over the 4th anyway) don't see the necessity of blowing up thirty grand in twenty minutes.
The OCBA committee will try again for 2016. If we get the ball rolling soon enough (like July 5th this year), then we can secure the July 4th date for 2016, and skip the argument about dates and go right to the argument about money.
At the April 8th OCBA meeting, the discussion about pyrotechnics got even more heated, with pretty much the same results, adding in that some people oppose fireworks out of respect for the tragic events of 2009, the last time Ocracoke tried to have fireworks.
On the morning of July 4th that year, the truck holding the fireworks exploded, killing four employees of Melrose South Pyrotechnics. The truck was parked in the NCCAT parking lot, and the explosion was heard and felt all over the island. Our own OVFD was on the scene, and barely missed injury themselves. It was a terrible tragedy, and one that no one will forget.
As a direct result of that accident, North Carolina increased regulations for pyrotechnic displays. NCCAT and the Park Service will no longer allow fireworks on their properties, and there's no other place on Ocracoke that is far enough from buildings to be safe for pyrotechnics. That leaves us with only one choice if we want to see the bombs bursting in air during our celebration: we have to go to sea.
Shooting fireworks from a barge brings another logistical twist to the proceedings, but we got that worked out at some expense. ($13,000 of the $31,000 is for the barge.) Pyrotechnic shows have gotten more expensive in the past six years, and, of course, every town wants fireworks on the 4th, making that day very competitive. (Even with the italics, that's an understatement.)
So, what's a small island to do?
OCBA's committee (that's me, plus Connie Leinbach, Amy Srail Johnson, Darlene Styron, and Justin LeBlanc) will go back to the commissioners to ask them to sponsor fireworks in 2016, and then we'll go back to the OT board and ask them to foot the bill. We can get the actual 4th next year if we act fast enough, but the cost ($31,000 plus $6000 contingency funds in the case of re-scheduling) will be comparable, if not more. It's not going to get cheaper.
So, as the Ocracoke Current's editor, I'm asking you, dear reader, do you want fireworks for 2016?
To answer that, I made a QUIZ! Well, actually it's a SURVEY, created with the free online survey tool Murvey, which I've never used before and really hope works. I'm always learning new things to make the Current better!
Anyway, the survey "Fireworks, love 'em or leave 'em?" isn't just about the possibility of fireworks, but also includes ways for you to give your opinion on all the 4th of July events, and suggest new and exciting things we've never tried before. Please go fill it out!
Note: the survey is written in the royal "we," but it's not officially endorsed by anyone but me, toiling here alone at the Current offices (my kitchen table.) It does not represent OCBA or the OT board, though I hope they'll be interested in the results.
Also, when the Virginian Pilot did a story on Ocracoke in February, they included an online poll that got 348 votes – 77%(269) of voters said yes to fireworks, 12%(41) said no, and 11%(38) didn't know or care. (Why did those 38 people even take the quiz?) Anyway, considering the Current has 500+ readers on a slow day, and over 10,000 unique visitors in a month, I think we can do better than that!
So please take the survey! Just click here!
