Will residents in Redmond be allowed to light up fireworks this summer?
Redmond city officials heard from experts and the public Tuesday night about the upcoming fire season, fire danger and fireworks. It’s all related to a public discussion on whether to place any restrictions on the private use of legal fireworks this year.
Representatives from Redmond Police, Redmond Fire & Rescue, Deschutes County Emergency Management and the Deschutes County Fairgrounds participated in the discussion about balancing fire danger with the use of fireworks.
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Redmond Police Chief Devin Lewis spoke about last year’s service calls during the 4th of July weekend. He reported that they received 61 fireworks complaints and, of those complaints, police issued one citation, seized one box of illegal fireworks and received 200 calls for service.
One local resident who has sold fireworks for nearly 20 years in Redmond advocated for the city not to ban fireworks.
“We’ve been blessed to give thousands of dollars to the country of Haiti and in Kenya, as well as the Ukraine. We’ve been blessed to get our property there in Bend on Bear Creek, we’ve been able to pay off everything which has been a real blessing to us,” he said.
According to a poll posted by city council, 47% of people who responded say legal fireworks should be allowed to use year-round. However, nearly a third of those who voted say they should be banned year-round. As of 11 a.m. Wednesday, 657 participated in the poll.
As of now, no decision has been made.
