GV fire chief seeks law to ban fireworks

From The Union:
http://www.theunion.com/article/20090512/NEWS/905119966

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

A law banning the possession, sale and use of fireworks in Grass Valley has been recommended for passage by Fire Chief Tony Clarabut at tonight’s City Council meeting.

Although a number of school, church and civic groups have sold fireworks within the city limits as a successful fundraiser in recent years, the ban would bring that to a halt.

According to Clarabut, the fireworks brought in $68,000 to the organizations in 2007.

Meanwhile, those groups are scrambling to develop other fundraisers — most to fund youth activities — in a poor economy where business sponsors have had to cut back on their contributions to such groups.

Grass Valley and Nevada City banned the sale and use of fireworks last year just before Independence Day as smoke filled the air from wildfires in the Yuba River and American River areas. Fireworks have been illegal in the unincorporated area of Nevada County since 1977, Clarabut said.

In a memo to the City Council, Clarabut said he would like the ban based on 12 fires in the county caused by fireworks from 2003 to 2007, and overall fire dangers.

Although few wildland fires are caused by fireworks, Clarabut said fire officials want the ban “to prevent that one fire that may become a major fire.”

“If they ban (fireworks), we’ve lost our fundraiser,” said Sue Ramey, fireworks coordinator for the Chicago Park 4-H Club, which makes about $10,000 each year selling them.

“We’ve tried other things, but they haven’t been successful,” Ramey said. “(We) use those funds for all kinds of community service projects.”

When then-chief Jim Marquis stepped in and stopped fireworks sales and use last year, “It was a good call,” Ramey said. “The fire chief always has the ability to close it down if conditions were like last year.”

But a full ban is not needed in normal years, Ramey added.

“We would have to find a new fundraiser,” said Jason Wood, the pastor of student ministries at Calvary Baptist Church. “We have things in the works, but nothing as profitable. I wish they would take it on a year-by-year decision based on fire danger.”

The Nevada Union Choir Boosters already have moved on from last year’s situation, preferring to go a different direction with fundraisers. The group benefited from the recent Nevada County’s Top Talent competition, and has a “fun run” set for June.

“Last year’s situation was part of it,” said Kimette Neufeld, the boosters’ president. “The public opinion is so negative, we thought it was counterproductive for our organization,” to keep selling fireworks.

“We’ve actually had people come up and yell at our volunteers” while they were working a fireworks booth, Neufeld said.

Even though they have taken fundraising in a different direction, Neufeld said the boosters still don’t support a ban on fireworks in the city.