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Independence Day fireworks to light up Sylva’s sky
By Samantha Blanton
Downtown Sylva’s 23rd annual Fourth of July fireworks display will light up the sky Monday night.
Sylva police will begin blocking off Main Street around 6 p.m. or when all the parking spaces are filled, said Jeff Carpenter, director of the county’s Recreation and Parks Department, which organizes the event.
Food and other vendors will set up shop in parking lots along Main Street. Several Main Street restaurants will be open as well, he said.
Special music will be provided by Matt Stillwell and the Bobby Sullivan Band beginning at 6 p.m. in the Carolina Community Bank parking lot, Carpenter said.
The fireworks display from the courthouse steps will get started after dark, Carpenter said.
Lawn chairs and radios are encouraged. WRGC will provide a background of patriotic music during the fireworks display along with a live remote at 6 p.m., sponsored by WestCare.
Information concerning inclement weather will be available from WRGC. If it does rain, the show will be pushed back to later in the night. If the event is rained out entirely, an alternate date will be announced, Carpenter said.
To ensure spectator safety, a 350-foot radius of the Courthouse must remain clear of people, Carpenter said. The closest viewers may get to the steps is the red light at Wachovia Bank.
Fireworks are not permitted in any area adajcent to Main Street.
Sylva’s fireworks display will be by Melrose Pyrotechnics, the same company that produces Stone Mountain’s laser and fireworks show and was used at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic games.
Among the organizations planning fund-raisers during the event are Sylva’s First Methodist and First Baptist Churches.
The Methodists will sell parking spaces in their Jackson Street lot for $10 each and conduct a silent auction at the church.
Baptists will sell ice cream, hot dogs and drinks from the church lawn. Also the church youth will have a booth set up for face painting.
In addition, another group of volunteers has devised an innovative plan to rasie money toward replacing courthouse planters damaged by vandals last month. The group has arranged for a mermaid, Magda, the Tuckaseegee River Maiden, to make an Independence Day appearance in the Courthouse fountain from noon to 2 p.m.
“Magda” will pose for pictures with children and adults, with a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the photos going towards new planters.
For more information, call508-8486 or visit online at Paddleshots.net.
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