Fireworks sales slow, but not the fears

Andrew Glazer

COSTA MESA -- The city’s phones began flashing and ringing as 33

fireworks stands opened here on Wednesday.

Residents opposed to Costa Mesa’s sale of fireworks made more than 100

phone calls to City Hall and to council members at their homes, City

Manager Allan L. Roeder said.

Many said they were concerned that heavy winds and this year’s unusually

dry fall has created a dangerous environment for New Year’s Eve

fireworks.

“People don’t have any control over which way the fireworks will fly,”

said Stan Suficool, 82, whose home backs onto the evergreens and dried

grass of Canyon Park. “We’ve got a wind blowing up from the ocean, which

could blow them anywhere. And we have all this dry timber here.”

The city’s fireworks stands only sell so-called “safe and sane”

fireworks, which do not launch. Roeder said the city also distributed

10,000 fliers Wednesday morning telling residents to not ignite

sparklers, Piccolo Petes and fountains in heavy winds.

“We hope people will use simple logic,” Roeder said. “You simply cannot

control the damage in those circumstances. We hope people would put them

away until July 4th.”

Costa Mesa is one of 100 California cities that is allowing the sale of

fireworks for New Year’s Eve.

Residents from neighboring cities prohibiting fireworks sales and

ignition have been outspoken in their opposition to Costa Mesa’s

leniency. Newport Beach city officials said they didn’t want people

igniting them in their city.

But despite all the controversy they have sparked, business at several of

the city’s fireworks stands was far from booming Wednesday afternoon.

One booth on Harbor Boulevard saw only five customers in its first four

hours of business. Until New Year’s Eve, vendors are allowed to sell the

fireworks from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m from the wooden, brightly painted booths.

“We really have high hopes that a lot of people come by,” said Jeani

Hoffman, who is one of the volunteer vendors raising money for a variety

of city nonprofit social service agencies. She said she hopes to raise

$4,000 from the stand for Costa Mesa High School’s grad night.

“That would save us from a lot of bake sales,” she said.

Tom Chandler, president of the Estancia High School boy’s basketball team

booster club, said people shouldn’t worry about the fireworks he and his

wife Carol were selling at their stand on 17th Street.

“The biggest concern are the illegal ones,” he said. “The ones we sell do

have some danger to them, but not nearly as much.”