City to consider reducing fireworks days to six

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BY CHUCK VANDENBERG

PCC EDITOR

FORT MADISON - An ordinance modifying the city's fireworks regulations is scheduled to be discussed at Monday's Fort Madison City Council meeting.

The council will meet at 5:30 p.m. Monday and not on its regular Tuesday schedule due to City Hall being used an a voting center for Tuesday's general election.

Fort Madison Fire Chief Joey Herren and Police Chief Tim Sittig have proposed restricted days and times to the current state fireworks laws, which is what the city adopted in 2016.

In a memo to the city council Herren and Sittig suggested the city consider a proposal to allow discharging of fireworks from July 1 through July 5 from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m, on Dec. 31st beginning at 9 a.m. until 1 a.m. Jan. 1. and from noon to 10 p.m. on January 1st. However, in a Chapter 12 description of the code, the time frame also includes a Jan. 1 allowance from noon to 10 p.m.

That proposal would reduce the days the state allows for use of fireworks from 63 days out of the year to six days.

City residents have been vocal since the end of the summer fireworks season about the impact of the fireworks on their neighborhood and their privacy.

According to state and county codes, fireworks cannot be sold past July 8. Temporary or tent structures can begin selling on June 13, with permanent structures able to sell starting June 1. All sales end July 8

Both state and county codes dictate that fireworks can be used on private property from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. June 1 through July 8 and again from Dec. 10 through Jan. 3.

In other action, the council:

  • will consider a 20-year contract with Rathbun Regional Water Association to provide up to two million gallons of potable water per day at a rate of $1.89 per 1000 gallons with a minimum purchase of 22 million gallons per month. At the minimum purchase, the city would receive close to $41,000 a month during the contract.
  • will consider the purchase of three pick-up trucks from Jim Baier, Inc. in Fort Madison for the public works department.
  • will consider renewing a management agreement with the Fort Madison YMCA that, for the second year, would turn over management operations of the Fort Madison Swimming Pool to the YMCA.

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