There will be no rockets red glare this Fourth of July in Jacksonville Beach. Although there was no official action taken, it was the overwhelming consensus among city officials to postpone a fireworks display until Labor Day or New Year’s Eve.
“Being that we’re still under a state of emergency, we’re trying to make the most informed decisions that we can,” said City Manager Mike Staffopoulos. “The question before us is whether or not to hold a Fourth of July fireworks display. Our recommendation from staff is that we not proceed with the event but consider doing it at a later point in the year, perhaps doing a Labor Day fireworks display.”
The council largely agreed that hosting such a large-scale event that draws thousands to the city center would not be in the best interest of public health and safety. Councilors Sandy Golding, Georgette Dumont, Phil Vogelsang, Chris Hoffman and Keith Doherty spoke in opposition of hosting a July 4 fireworks display, citing concerns regarding large crowds coming to the beach and the burden on law enforcement to maintain social distancing standards.
“As many of you are aware, there are still guidelines in place issued by the CDC as well as the governor with regards to crowd size and social distancing. Inviting tens of thousands of people into our downtown at night in the dark would create a virtual impossibility to manage any type of social distancing,” said Staffopoulos.
“As [Police] Chief [Gene Paul] Smith and I discussed on several occasions leading up to this meeting, if the city were to proceed with a fireworks display, there legitimately can be no expectation of enforcing social distancing.”
According to Smith, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office provides 70 to 80 people for traffic.
“Understandably, I’ve not heard back from sheriff or under sheriff on any commitments for traffic. I can’t imagine with everything that’s going on in the next week or two that he’s going have any idea if he’s going to be able to commit 70 to 80 people to me for traffic,” he said. “Without that traffic control, there’s no way we can do it and just let all that traffic go and everyone just fend for themselves.”
Many other communities are also cancelling events, heightening concerns that the number of people that would come to the Beaches to watch fireworks would be higher than seen in previous years. Orlando cancelled its live demonstration and instead will hold a “virtual” fireworks display. Flagler County; the cities of Flagler Beach, Daytona Beach and Gainesville; and Naval Station Mayport have also cancelled. St. Augustine was awaiting a decision from Jacksonville Beach before making its decision. Fernandina Beach will have a fireworks display hosted by a third-party non-profit, but no vendors will be allowed to participate in the event.
Orange Park has postponed its fireworks display until Labor Day, St. Mary’s delayed until Shrimp Fest in October and Palatka has postponed as well. Jacksonville recently announced plans to move forward with fireworks downtown as well as several smaller shows that would be visible throughout the city. The city also plans to work with local television stations to broadcast the display.
Councilman Keith Doherty, who has worked in downtown Jacksonville Beach for the last 20 years as general manager of Lynch’s Irish Pub, said the Beaches will still be packed July 4 regardless of whether or not there are fireworks. He proposed postponing the event until New Year’s Eve since Labor Day can still draw large crowds to the Beaches.
“I know that there are just thousands of people that come starting at 10 in the morning and usually the fireworks are kind of like the last call, so to speak, for people to go home,” said Doherty.
“We cannot enforce social distancing. I’ve already seen that people are kind of over it already. In another month’s time, I think there will be less social distancing and it will be a monster day for the beach and a very taxing and stressful day for the police force.”
Cory Nichols was the only member who spoke in favor of a July 4 fireworks display.
“I think we need to do absolutely everything we can to have these fireworks. I think the community really wants it and I think this whole time with COVID has put us in not a good situation with our residents. I think they need to get out and do something.”
Nichols also expressed concern that the decision was preemptive, given that the city is not financially responsible for the cost of a display. While Jacksonville pays for the cost of fireworks, if Jacksonville Beach canceled after the June 4 deadline, the city would be liable for the deposit.
“The agreement does not come to city of Jacksonville. It comes to Jacksonville Beach. If we execute that agreement and back out at later point in time, we are on the hook financially for deposit which is half of the amount, around $11-$12,000,” said Staffopoulos.
Mayor Pro-Tem Chris Hoffman encouraged the council to consider alternative locations to the beachfront for future date, noting that the golf course would provide ample space to host a large-scale event.
“You don’t gather the crowds right there,” she said. “It would be very visible to a lot of the community from their homes.”
Said Vogelsang, “I don’t know where we’ll be Labor Day,” speaking in favor of hosting a fireworks display during the slower winter season. “Just to help our local economy and have a day for people to come when we are slow would help kind of craft that message to the public. I want to have something for people to look forward to.”
June 15, 2026
