Economy forces cutbacks on Fourth fireworks

Many North Shore communities are scaling back their Fourth of July celebrations due to the troubled economy.The annual Independence Day fireworks display on Lynn Shore Drive, which is a joint effort between Lynn and Swampscott, usually costs $50,000, but a decision was made early this year to scale back the fireworks due to the current economic climate.Swampscott Town Accountant David Castellarin said the fireworks display this year has already been contracted out to Atlas PyroVision, which is based in Jaffrey, N.H., and has been shooting off the annual Lynn-Swampscott display for years. Castellarin said the contract for this year’s display is $37,000.Lynn Mayor Edward J. Clancy’s Deputy Chief of Staff Andrea Scalise said the city wanted to set a realistic fundraising goal that could be attained in spite of a tanking economy so the display was scaled back.?We didn’t want to set our sights too high,” she said. “We want to be realistic so we can meet our goals. We realize a lot of families are struggling in this economy and it will be more difficult for people to give this year. We’re at about 55 percent of our goal.”In addition to the cost of the pyrotechnics display, many communities are struggling to raise funds to pay for public safety costs associated with the Fourth of July.Castellarin said last year it cost approximately $2,400 for police details in Swampscott during the fireworks alone. Scalise said public safety costs in Lynn associated with the fireworks cost approximately $5,000 last year and she expects it be about the same this year.Depending on the success of fund raising efforts, the size of the fireworks display in Nahant may or may not be scaled back this year, but one thing that has changed is the venue. Fireworks are usually shot off from Short Beach but because it is in a densely populated area of town and close to Nahant Road, holding the fireworks there increases the costs dramatically. Nahant Town Administrator Mark Cullinan said when the fireworks were held at Short Beach in 2007, it cost the town more than $4,000 in public safety overtime costs alone.?We had to have crews set up fencing,” he said. “We had to pay for police details to direct traffic around the detours. That money comes out of our operating budget.”Selectman Richard Lombard said the decision to have the fireworks at Bailey’s Hill is in the best interest of the town from a financial perspective.?It’s extra money we just can’t afford,” he said. “It’s going to be a very tight year for everybody. We also don’t want to have shut down a portion of the major road in town for most of the day. “