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Orange adopts 'safe and sane' fireworks rules with permit lottery, signage and limits on use areas
Summary
Council introduced and adopted Ordinance 01-25 and Resolution 11593 to implement Measure AA: a permit lottery for initial sales (eight permits), clear 'no-fireworks' boundaries east of Hughes/Cannon in parts of East Orange, required booth signage and a two-year buyer flyer; council added a logistics tweak requiring unsold product be removed by 5 p.m. July 5.
The City Council on Jan. 14 introduced and passed a local ordinance (01-25) and companion resolution (11593) to implement Measure AA authorizing "safe and sane" fireworks sales and use within defined parts of the city. The new rules establish sale and use windows, set geographic areas where fireworks are prohibited and create an annual permit lottery for qualified local nonprofit applicants.
Under the ordinance as amended by council motion, fireworks sales will be limited to defined hours (noon–10 p.m. July 1–3 and expanded hours for select days; July 4 rules slightly different), no sale or discharge is allowed east of Hughes Street and east of Cannon Street north of Santiago Canyon Road in the city’s delineated East Orange zones, and sellers must be at least 18 years old.
The council approved a lottery process to select eight nonprofit permit-holders for the program’s first year (Council reserved the right to increase permits later after an evaluation). John Kelly of TNT Fireworks advised starting conservatively and evaluating the program in August; staff and council agreed to an after-action report by the second meeting in August. Kelly recommended starting low to avoid oversaturating the market.
Council members also required booth signage that clearly shows where sale/use is legal and illegal and authorized a two-year requirement that purchasers be handed a map-based flyer specifying permitted and prohibited zones and penalties. At Mayor Pro Tem Bilodeau's request the council amended the ordinance to require unsold product to be returned to wholesalers no later than 5 p.m. on July 5 rather than the same night.
Public comment was robust. Several residents asked for permanent signage and strict enforcement in East Orange and sharper fines for illegal use; some speakers said the Cannon boundary runs too close to dry vegetation and asked the council to redraw the line. The fire department and police department committed to stepped-up enforcement and signage planning for the first year. The ordinance and resolution passed on a 5–2 vote, with Council Members Gutierrez and Barrios voting no.
