On Thursday the Town of Fort Myers Beach and City of Sanibel asked the Tourist Development Council for money to help pay for their 2025 4th of July Fireworks celebrations. Here’s what happened.
Sanibel asked the TDC to cover $13,000 of their $30,000 fireworks bill and Fort Myers Beach asked for $37,500. Both requests were half the cost of the fireworks shows. The reason Fort Myers Beach is so much higher is because the fireworks need to be shot from a barge. Before Hurricane Ian the pier (owned by Lee County) was used as the staging area. The cost to rent the barge is nearly $40,000. The last 3 fireworks celebrations on Fort Myers Beach originated from a barge, the last one to celebrate kick off of the 2025 New Year was blurred by an unexpected midnight fog.
At the TDC meeting Sanibel Vice Mayor Holly Smith said the request is being made because both municipalities are still working through financial hardships dealt their way by Hurricane Ian in September of 2022. Both municipalities stressed how vital Sanibel and Fort Myers Beach are to bringing in the tourist dollars which help fund beach renourishment related projects all over Lee County. The TDC has never really broken down exactly how much each municipality kicks in (and we’ve requested that information in the past). However, it’s no secret Sanibel and Fort Myers Beach are major contributors, especially pre-Ian when more hotel rooms were available…