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The annual Independence Day fireworks display will be even bigger for 2024, with additional funding from the city Tourism and Community Development Commission coming this year.

Members of the Commission voted unanimously to allocate funds to bring the fireworks show to 25 minutes.

Alderman Joey Hobbs said during the Jan. 8 Tourism and Community Development Commission meeting that Manchester’s Parks and Recreation recently spoke to the Finance Committee about the increasing costs of the annual fireworks display, which have amounted to about a 30% increase.

“In the past we have budgeted $15,000, this year we budgeted $20,000,” Parks and Recreation Director A.J. Fox said during the meeting. “Out at Budget and Finance when we were discussing all of that, Joey (Hobbs) had brought up the idea of coming to Tourism and asking, are we happy with $20,000 worth of fireworks or do we want Tourism to throw a little more money into the fireworks display.”

Fox said Parks and Recreation has not previously approached the Tourism and Community Development Commission about contributing to the cost of the fireworks because historically they have paid for the live band that performs as part of the Independence Day event at Rotary Park.

Hobbs asked what the commission paid last year for the live band, and Fox said the cost was about $8,000.

Fox said Parks and Recreation put out a request for proposal for a three-year contract with a fireworks company to eliminate the need to bid it out every year.

“That came back and we are going to award the proposal to Pyro Shows, who we have used in the past many years ago,” he said. “We used Impact Pyro the last two years, but Pyro Shows came back this year, they met the number of shells that we were asking for, they were good with the $20,000.”

Assistant Parks and Recreation Director Becki Johnson said that $20,000 budget buys the city approximately a 17-minute fireworks show.

“…It costs a little over $1,000 a minute for fireworks,” Johnson said.

Commissioners agreed that contributing about $10,000 to increase the city’s show from 17 minutes to 25 was the way to go.

“I think our Fourth of July show is a good drawl and it draws from other little small places, especially around us,” Lori Perry said.

With the additional contribution for fireworks, both the Tourism and Community Development Commission and the Manchester Parks and Recreation Department will fund the city Independence Day Celebration in about a 50/50 split.