Fireworks to Light Up Douglasville
The show starts around 8:45 p.m. Monday and the best parking is at the mall or the high school.
When it comes to fireworks for the Fourth of July, Douglasville officials know to call in the professionals.
The city hired Atlanta Pyrotechnics International, who handled the extravaganza last year, for $11,400. Nobody with the city will be shooting fireworks, said a laughing Bennett Oliver, director of the city's Parks and Recreation Department.
"It's not like we went down to Alabama" and got a bunch of fireworks. Oliver said the team from Atlanta Pyrotechnics will come in and shoot off the 19-minute display from the driving range of West Pines Golf Course.
It's the third year that Greystone Power and Gas South have picked up the tab for the fireworks display, Oliver said.
"It's a huge controbution to the city," he said.
Each year, the city gives the firework's company its budget and the company picks out the show themselves.
The show starts around 8:45 p.m. and the best parking is at the mall or the high school, Oliver said. Due to safety concerns, the public isn't allowed to park at the golf course.
Murray Jr
2:29 pm on Monday, July 4, 2011
$11,400? I'll take the kids, but that seems like a lot of money.
Fran Armstrong
3:09 pm on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
"It's the third year that Greystone Power and Gas South have picked up the tab for the fireworks display, Oliver said. "
It was a contribution from Greystone and Gas South.
Heather
7:27 pm on Monday, July 4, 2011
Don't worry, they can always rise property taxes to pay for it. They know how to spend your money the best!
Yellow hammer
5:52 pm on Monday, July 2, 2012
They said greystone power and gas south paid for it. It's a tax wright off. If they didn't do fireworks y'all would bitch about that!
Fred
9:36 am on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
The fireworks are "free" because Greystone and Gas South print money in their basements? Where do they get their money from?
YOU!
When a company spends money on something like a "free" fireworks display, that money has to come from somewhere. Greystone, as a cooperative, has less money to return to its member-owners and Gas South has less money to return to its stockholders when they fund something like this. Or those companies just charge their customers more money for their services so the companies will have extra money to help fund "free" fireworks. Sure those companies receive "advertising" in return, but who is going to change providers just on the fact that they got a "free" fireworks show?
Tax write-off? So the State and Federal governments get less money from Greystone and Gas South because of the "free" fireworks. Who makes up the difference? With State budgets, that cannot have deficit spending, you pay by either higher taxes or fewer services. With Federal budgets, our grandchildren - who will be paying for the deficits of today - will help pay.
Either way, if you are a customer or an owner of Greystone or Gas South or a citizen of Georgia and/or the USA, YOU are paying for the fireworks.
Remember this fact: Nothing is free, someone - consumers and taxpayers - pay for everything.
Doug
5:56 pm on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Tax right offs are taxes that are paid by you and me. Please get real.
Bobbi Kreider
10:13 pm on Monday, July 2, 2012
I am thankful our city is holding this event for us..fireworks are expensive and glad our city has donors to pay so we can all be close to home with our kids
Eric Richardson
12:04 pm on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Happy 4th er...2nd of July!
Susan Parks
12:42 pm on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Fred, get a life! I bet you're a drag to be around. BTW I haven't been a Greystone customer since 2005 and I'm still getting cooperative checks from them each year. I bet they manage their $$$ better than you manage yours! Hope I don't run into you anywhere watching the DONATED fireworks display in Douglasville tomorrow night!
Fred
6:55 pm on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
I have a life, thank you very much. I guess I would consider myself a "drag to be around" if I was the kind of person who whould be ignorant enough to think that the money that pays for something like the fireworks tomorrow appears out of thin air. Fortunately, I am not.
If you are OK with Greystone doing whatever it wants with YOUR money that is your business. As you open your power bill after this record heat, know that they will have even more your YOUR money to play with.
Honestly though, if people want to tax themselves or forgo lower utility rates (or bigger cooperative checks) then I do not have a problem with that. What I do have a problem with is people thinking that money spent on something like fireworks is "free".
I hope you enjoy the fireworks Susan, since you helped pay for them!
Brian
1:50 pm on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
fred is right, and people not understanding or careing where how and why money is spent is what has gotten this country in such a mess, the fire works are not DONATED greystone will tell you that,
Fran Armstrong
3:13 pm on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
To tell you the truth, I'm happy whenever I get my Greystone check. What other utility company sends you a check? Greystone is a huge supporter of the community and I think the majority of people who live in Douglas County and the surrounding areas will be thrilled to see the fireworks display instead of having to listen to noisy neighbors shooting off their fire crackers all hours of the night.
Mike
1:38 pm on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
This is still the best nation to live in.......! Try living under a dictator.
Doug
6:00 pm on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Thought we already are.
Ryan. smith
2:12 pm on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Just have fun and be with your families .....
John Barker
2:16 pm on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
HI everyone and thanks for the comments! Just wanted to make sure everyone knows this is last year's article. This is this year's info: http://patch.com/A-v7L9
Mike
10:27 am on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
That article was missleading ! Why was last years article printed to appear as if it were current ?
Don
1:25 pm on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Celebrate our Independence and enjoy the fireworks display. Be thankful someone cares.....
Fran Armstrong
9:17 pm on Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Oh, sorry. I didn't get the memo saying that this was last years article.
Carl Pyrdum Jr.
10:52 am on Thursday, July 5, 2012
Amazing commentaries. I hope everyone is aware of the 'other contributions' and 'tax write offs' that Greystone and other companies are giving and receiving annually, both locally and nationally. I hope everyone is aware of the fact that we are paying for those also. I also hope Douglas county residents are aware of what some of these 'causes' being contributed to are and what they truly represent. Or are the points being made here more succinct, in that many here are unashamed to criticize their country and anyone celebrating their own freedoms. At the same time these same folks are probably terrified of criticizing any of the popularized egalitarian motifs that are foisted on us regularly by corporate America and the media. Personally, I remain proud to be an American and I am pleased that there are those like Greystone and Gas South who sponsor our celebration of the 4th. I would rather my money be spent on celebrating our own heritage and history, than most of the other things that are being sponsored with my money in today's world by many of these same politically correct driven corporations.
Fred
11:20 am on Thursday, July 5, 2012
No moral judgments from me. I only want folks to understand that in the long-run consumers/taxpayers/regular-people pay for everything via the taxes and the cost of goods and services. Sponsorship is not "free", the costs get passed along - directly in higher prices (or lower dividends) and indirectly by reduced money paid to governments in taxes.
This same principal applies to sports and entertainment figures: The $27M paid annually to A-Rod to play a game gets funded via higher prices on the consumer goods that are advertised via the games he plays in.