Item 6-H
City Council Meeting: August 17, 1999 Santa Monica, California
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Staff
SUBJECT: Recommendation to Approve Fireworks as Part of the Santa Monica Pier Days and BIG Stroll Celebration
INTRODUCTION
This report recommends that City Council approve a fireworks display as part of the Santa Monica Pier Days and BIG Stroll into the Millennium celebration on Saturday, October 2, 1999.
DISCUSSION
City Council approval is required for use of fireworks in local events. On Saturday, October 2, 1999 a fireworks display is planned in conjunction with festivities along the City
=s beachfront. The Santa Monica Pier will celebrate its 90th anniversary during Pier Days on October 2 and 3. The City will hold the official dedication of the Beach Improvement Group (B.I.G.) Project and kick off the Millennium celebration with the ABIG Stroll into the Millennium@ on October 2. City staff has been working with the Pier Restoration Corporation to coordinate these events into a community celebration of our coastal resources. The BIG Stroll will begin on Saturday afternoon at South Beach with the planting of the first AMillennium Tree.@ Community members and visitors will be invited to stroll along Ocean Front Walk, the Pier, and Palisades Park, while entertainment is offered at various venues. The BIG Stroll will end at dusk at Inspiration Point with the dedication of a new Millennium Wall. The Pier Restoration Corporation, with the support of the Santa Monica Pier Lessees Association, will conclude the Saturday festivities with a 15-minute fireworks display, launched from a barge near the Santa Monica Pier. Visitors will be invited to watch the fireworks from Palisades Park and from the Santa Monica Pier. Publicity about the fireworks display will be limited to advertising in local newspapers as part of the information about the Pier Days and the BIG Stroll events.The fireworks company, Fireworks America, has conducted fireworks displays for Seaworld and Magic Mountain and has experience launching fireworks from a barge. The barge is loaded in the City of Long Beach and will arrive via tug boat which will be stationed alongside the barge at all times in case the barge needs to be repositioned. Because the fireworks are being discharged from a barge in the Bay, the State Fire Marshall has jurisdiction. Consequently, the Santa Monica Fire Department will not require any personnel at this event. The State Fire Marshall will inspect the barge in Long Beach and will require that two boats accompany the barge. The fireworks will be discharged upwards and will not interfere with flight paths.
BUDGET/FINANCIAL IMPACT
Funds in the amount of $10,000 are available in Account 01274.544390 (Millennium event) to support the fireworks display. The Pier Restoration Corporation and the Santa Monica Pier Lessees Association will bear all other costs.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that Council approve a display of fireworks in conjunction with the Pier Days and BIG Stroll into the Millennium celebration on October 2, 1999.
Prepared by:
Barbara Stinchfield, Director
Judith Meister, Beach Manager
Community and Cultural Services Department