Foster City suspends Fourth of July fireworks

“While we are disappointed that the fireworks show will be postponed this year, our top priority is the health and safety of our community and City staff. And without adequate space to safely accommodate the large crowds that typically gather to watch the fireworks, we believe this difficult decision is in everyone’s best interest,” Mayor Stacy Jimenez said in a press release. “But once the new Foster City Community Center is complete, we look forward to welcoming the community back in an even more amazing setting to once again celebrate this wonderful holiday.”

Parks and Recreation Director Derek Schweigart said construction began in November and is still on track to be 18 to 20 months with completion in summer of 2026.

“We expect to be full fledged in construction mode throughout the summer coming up,” he said, adding that attendance was likely to be lower this summer anyway since the Fourth of July is on a Friday. “When Fourth of July falls closer to a holiday weekend, we see a trend down in our participation, and it just so happens we are anticipating a lower attendance than last year even if we did the fireworks, because historically on weekends or close to weekends, people go away.”

Last year, members of the Foster City Parks and Recreation Committee received a presentation by the Citizens Sustainability Advisory Committee about alternatives to the fireworks show, including drones, light and water displays and laser shows. 

Firework displays cost around $1,000 to $1,500 per minute and estimated the city spent between $20,000 to $25,000 last year for fireworks. According to the committee presentation, quotes for some of the alternative options range anywhere from about $20,000 to $100,000, depending on the length of the show and how customized it would be. The discussion was left at the committee level, however, and this announcement is separate from it.

“Since that presentation, there hasn’t been a significant action of research on it. The committee said they’d do some further investigating and they’d present that to Parks and Recreation at a future date,” he said. “We want to revisit the topic of course, and during this time when the recreation center is closed, we can do some further research.”

City officials said other community events traditionally hosted at Leo Ryan Park will be held as planned this year during the construction of the Community Center — though there may be modifications to some programming and features. More information about celebrations such as Fourth of July, Summer Days, and other community events, will be available in greater detail over the coming months, according to the city.