SEATAC, Wash. — This year's traditional Fourth of July fireworks show in SeaTac will be replaced with a drone show, following a citizen complaint that sparked discussions about appropriate and legal uses of Angle Lake.
A resident contacted the City of SeaTac in December about hydroplane races, citing prior legal rulings about non-navigable lakes.
"What [the city] determined is the city can't permit activity, anything that would shut down access to the entire lake for individuals," said Kyle Moore, the City of SeaTac government relations and communications manager. "It becomes a point of access to the lake — does everyone have equal access to the lake? That led to the broader discussion of permits for the lake."
The city determined that permitting hydroplane races would restrict access to much of the lake, and as the conversation broadened, realized fireworks shows in recent years may do the same. The city uses barges on the lake to set off fireworks, and because property around the lake was purchased in recent years, has had to close the public shoreline to load the barges. A drone light show would not require equivalent use of the lake in a way that would restrict access, the city said.
Not everyone is pleased with the decision. The citizen who made the hydroplane complaint said he did not intend to impact the fireworks show, and personally does not have a problem with it or think it restricts access. A neighbor also launched a petition about the issue.
Meanwhile, the nonprofit organization that previously co-sponsored fireworks with the city is looking into holding its own Independence Day fireworks show separate from the city's drone show.
The city said in addition to the main reasoning for the decision, it's also begun to invest more work in protecting the environmental quality of the lake and said this may also play a role.
"There's access issues, environmental issues and safety issues," Moore said. "When you're loading explosives onto a barge, there's a safety issue for not only the public but also the staff members there to block off the area as they're loading the barges."
The City of SeaTac acknowledges it is a big change for a lot of people. The city of Des Moines also set off a drone light show last year, and they've grown in popularity in recent years.
"It's environmentally friendly, it's friendly to the wildlife, it's friendly to the shore, the lake and keeping it healthy, and it's also friendly to animals and people that may have PTSD, or other things like that," Moore said. "They won't hear the loud explosions and have dogs rattled by those explosions which is an issue every year with fireworks shows."