By Patrick Sherry
Days before Delray Beach’s Fourth of July Celebration, city staff had to scramble to find a way to put on the city’s fireworks show after finding out the barge for launching the display would not be available.
Local leaders blamed issues with contractors for this year’s short fireworks show — but praised staff for being able to get even the smaller display into the air.
City officials planned the celebration for months, but on July 1, contractors Beyel Brothers and Zambelli Fireworks informed them the barge was a no-go.
City staff spent the next couple of days trying to find vendors and get approvals to prevent the show from being canceled.
“A lot of good work was executed on part of staff…. I applaud them — I compliment them — and quite frankly, I’m very proud of them,” City Manager Terrence Moore said during a discussion of the event at the City Commission’s July 14 meeting. “I think you should be, too, because we were treated god-awful and poorly, and I continue to remain upset about it.”
The city does not own a barge or have any offshore islands to launch fireworks on, so staff pivoted to firing them from the beach. With the short notice and limited supply from vendors, the show lasted several minutes.
Commissioners wanted to hold the contractors accountable for the mishap. However, City Attorney Lynn Gelin said their only option is to cancel the contract.
“There’s nothing [in the contract] to say that if they don’t perform the way that they promise, that somehow we get reimbursed or we can issue a fine,” she said.
But the city was able to get some money back. The city paid $95,000 for the fireworks and received a $47,500 refund July 22, half the total cost, city spokeswoman Gina Carter said.
Commissioners agreed to include a penalty clause in future contracts and look into hosting fireworks shows at a different location.
“We should be considering other places that are on land that we could plan for, where we wouldn’t have to be dependent on a barge,” Commissioner Tom Markert said. “I think we should look at it, and then we should bring it back to the public and let people know what our options are.”
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