Fourth of July funds blow up

Andrew Edwards

Surf City’s Fourth of July committee has not only secured funds for

one of the largest fireworks shows on the West Coast, it is well on

its way to paying for the entire Independence Day celebration.

“We’re over $100,000, [raised] that’s for sure,” committee

Chairwoman Pamela Stier said. “We’re closer to $200,000.”

The controversial fireworks show, which will be shot off a barge

over the ocean for the first time in three decades, will cost about

$100,000, about half of which will pay for extra police, Stier said.

The total cost of the day’s activities, including the 100th annual

Fourth of July parade through Downtown, will be about $325,000.

The parade is scheduled to have 350 entries, including floats and

bands like the Marching Rebels from Minnesota. The community grand

Marshall will be Dale Dunn, whose many community activities include

participation in the Rotary Club, the Council on Aging and the

Chamber of Commerce. Planned celebrity guests include gymnast Cathy

Rigby and Jerry Mathers, “the Beaver” of sitcom fame.

“It’s really jam full,” Stier said.

To pay for the days’ events, the Fourth of July Committee has been

busy obtaining corporate sponsorships and selling souvenirs and

fireworks’ show tickets, which will offer ticket-holders a front row

seat on the pier, committee spokeswoman Connie Young said.

Front row seats are $50 apiece and there are 2,000 spots

available, she said.

The fireworks will be shot off of a barge floating near the pier,

Paul Souza, the fireworks show coordinator with Pyro Spectaculars,

said.

Since the shells will fall into the ocean instead of on land, he

said he can unleash the bigger bangs in his arsenal, promising an

amazing show.

“We’re going to be seeing things for the first time ... we’ve

never been able to do this scale of a show in Huntington Beach,” he

said.

More than 1,000 rockets, ranging from low-level light shows to

10-inch shells that blast more than 1,000 feet in the air, will be

launched in the show Souza said.

Fireworks last lighted up in the Surf City shoreline in the

mid-1970s, before the show was moved to Huntington Beach High School.

There was no fireworks show in the city last year. The City Council

gave permission for the show in February, reversing a January vote

against a show that was made out of a desire to prevent a repeat of

the rioting that plagued Independence Day celebrations in the 1990s.

Safety concerns mean the Police Department will be out in full

force, Lt. Craig Juninger said. More than 220 officers, essentially

the entire department, aided by the California Highway Patrol and

Orange County Sheriff’s Department will be on the streets, he added.

“We encourage everyone to come down and have a good time and enjoy

a family atmosphere, and just know that the laws will be enforced,”

Juninger said.

All fireworks are illegal in Huntington Beach, and alcohol is not

allowed on or near the beach, Juninger said.

The parade is set to start at 10 a.m., and will begin at the

intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and 8th Street, head over to

Main Street, and come to a stop at Yorktown Avenue and Main Street.

The fireworks’ show is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m.

Souza suggested spectators show up early and enjoy a day at the

beach before the rockets launch.

“Bring a blanket and a ghetto blaster,” he said.