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Cottonwood Heights council weighs wider fireworks restrictions; chief urges clear, enforceable map
Summary
Unified Fire battalion chief presented a revised map that expands some restricted zones beyond statutory hazard buffers to create clearer enforcement lines; councilors debated balancing public-safety justifications against residents' desire to use sparklers and other consumer fireworks.
Battalion Chief Riley Pilgrim of Unified Fire Authority presented a proposed revision to Cottonwood Heights’ fireworks-restriction map on Tuesday, urging the council to adopt clearer, expanded boundaries that officials say will be easier for residents and first responders to understand and enforce.
Pilgrim said the map keeps statutory hazard-area buffers but adds targeted extensions under a provision he cited as "1.1 0.4" to remove confusing doglegs and small pockets where adjacent open spaces and ravines increase fire risk. "We've met with our GIS specialist; we've driven every area and tried to connect the dots so it's defensible and clear," Pilgrim said, urging the council to approve the purple areas on the screen so the city can publish the map to county emergency management the next day.
The proposal would keep traditionally restricted hillside and drainage areas and add adjacent residential pockets where open-yard ignition could threaten wildland fuels or neighboring properties. Pilgrim told the council the changes are intended to reduce enforcement ambiguity: "Cutting off those doglegs makes law enforcement’s job a lot easier," he said.
Council members split on how far to extend the restrictions. One council member urged limiting restrictions so families could safely use small items such as sparklers in neighborhood settings; another proposed a simple, straight demarcation line east of 2700 East and south of a specified thoroughfare to make the map easier for residents to follow. Several members said they were comfortable adopting the purple areas while adding a few targeted pockets (for example, near Bywater Park and Sable Avenue) that had produced complaints in prior years.
Pilgrim acknowledged noncompliance is likely and that the city will rely partly on public education and on encouraging attendance at permitted municipal shows, but he said recent drought and topography warrant a conservative approach. "These are defensible decisions," Pilgrim said. "This makes police and law enforcement job way easier and reduces additional threat to these areas."
The council directed staff to prepare precise language describing the map changes for the business meeting so the ordinance and map could be updated in the meeting packet. Pilgrim emphasized the city can revise the map in future years if needed.
What happens next: Council members agreed staff would draft the motion language and a revised map to be attached to the ordinance for consideration at the business meeting. If the council adopts the map, staff said it could be posted to the county emergency-management website the next morning.
