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CITY OF WEST CHICAGO
PUBLIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY
ITEM TITLE:
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER: 5-0.
Fireworks at a Summer Festival
FILE NUMBER:
COMMITTEE AGENDA DATE: January 24, 2022
COUNCIL AGENDA DATE: February 7, 2022
SIGNATURE ZZ =
APPROVED BY CITY ADMINISTRATOR:
Michael Guttman SIGNATURE
STAFF REVIEW: Tom Dabareiner
ITEM SUMMARY:
Last year, without the “Hello Summer” event, which was cancelled due to COVID, the Park District
requested the City-sponsored fireworks display be rescheduled for Saturday, August 14, 2021. This
corresponded with the Park District’s Tacos and Art Festival. The change was approved by City Council on
July 6, 2021.
In 2022, the City has a couple options for sponsoring fireworks and Staff seeks direction from Committee
members:
e The Park District is choosing to not hold “Hello Summer” but will host the Tacos and Art Festival
again. District Staff has asked the City to sponsor fireworks on the evening of the Tacos and Art
Festival to be held in mid-August.
e A second option may be reviving the fireworks at Railroad Days to be held in and around the
weekend of July 9, 2022. The Railroad Days options brings the fireworks closer to Independence
Day, which was the desire expressed by some Aldermen last year.
However, another issue has arisen regarding sponsoring fireworks. The City had budgeted $15,000 for
several years in a row. Due to increased costs, last year’s fireworks lasted 25 minutes, instead of the 30
minutes as in prior years. As a result, Staff increased the budget this year by 17% to $17,500. However,
Staff has been told by the provider that material costs have risen 40-50%, meaning a $15,000/25 minute
fireworks show could cost as much as $22,500.
Staff researched competitors and find they are either not available on one or both weekends, experiencing
similar cost increases, or have gone out of business in the last year. The vendor we used in the recent past
is available at the higher cost for both dates, as of mid-January. Staff seeks direction, in addition to the
event preference discussion, on whether to discontinue City sponsorship or further increase the budget.

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CITY OF WEST CHICAGO
ACTIONS PROPOSED:
Direction on whether to sponsor fireworks at Railroad Days or the Tacos and Art Fest. Also, direction on
whether to increase the budget for fireworks or not sponsor any in 2022.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION:
At their meeting on January 24, 2022, members of the Public Affairs Committee voted 5-1 in favor of
recommending the higher fee and a July 9, 2022 event at Railroad Days.