With Canada Day coming up next week, many Collingwood residents will have their eyes on the sky to watch a familiar fireworks display in celebration.
However, in future years, public fireworks displays in Collingwood could look a little different.
During Monday’s (June 20) regular council meeting, Coun. Deb Doherty said she would be bringing a notice of motion requesting staff to report back as part of the 2023 budget deliberations on some alternatives to traditional fireworks displays in Collingwood.
“We are fast approaching Canada Day. When we approach holidays like these ones, invariably the discussion (turns to) fireworks and the positive and negative aspects of fireworks,” said Doherty.
Director of Parks, Recreation and Culture Dean Collver gave council an update on Canada Day plans for this year.
“We’ll be proceeding as we’ve done traditionally with a fireworks program for the Canada Day event,” said Collver.
Collver said the town had looked at the possibility of adding drones to this year’s festivities, however the town “didn’t have the budget to support it.”
“We didn’t receive any grants we had applied for,” he said. “We’ll continue to look for opportunities to move toward quiet fireworks, or silent fireworks, or drones. These are really the only feasible alternatives that we’ve found.”
Under the Town of Collingwood’s current bylaw, fireworks are only permitted to be set off on Victoria Day and Canada Day between dusk at 11 p.m. on those days.
Doherty noted she would be bringing forward a notice of motion on the subject at the June 27 meeting.
On July 1, the town will be hosting the Collingwood Festival for Canada, which will include the Collingwood Optimist Club pancake breakfast, a giant Canada Flag birthday cake, a Citizenship Reaffirmation Ceremony, and fireworks at dark.
