Expect Big New Year's Eve Fireworks Show in Webster
An 18-minute fireworks show over Moss Field on Dec. 31 will deliver residents with the thrills they've come to expect from Webster Groves Community Days.
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Fireworks in Webster Groves might be on a different date this year but that doesn't mean they're going to be any less epic than those planned for Community Days.
"It's a big one and it's going to be a good one," Webster Groves Parks and Recreation Director Mike Oppermann said of the fireworks display scheduled for New Year's Eve at Moss Field. "It's high intensity and has a great finale with lots of surprises in the middle and it's going to open up with a big barrage."
Fireworks will be launched from Moss Field Dec. 31 at 8:30 p.m. in a celebration the city is calling "Fire and Ice." The event is to make up for the Community Days fireworks show that had to be cancelled due to draught conditions.
The Fire and Ice display will last 18 minutes and cost $17,500, the same amount as the July Fourth display planned for Community Days.
"The idea behind the display is to follow through for residents," Oppermann said. "It seemed strange to look up at the sky on the Fourth of July and not see fireworks. This is the right decision."
The parks and recreation director notes that the show has been designed so families can keep their Community Days traditions while offering residents some unique winter fun.
Residents can stake out their favorite Webster fireworks spots just as always and, before the firworks show, the city will open the Webster Groves Recreation Complex for a public skating session from 6:30-8 p.m. The recreation complex will also have open gym during this time.
Price of admission for the skating or recreational use of the gym is $5 which includes the price of skates.
For $15, residents can attend a rotary club event and watch the fireworks from the recreation complex meeting rooms. The event includes a family-oriented party with activity for kids, refreshments, food and movies. All of the proceeds will go toward rotary programs and charities. Proceeds from the public skate and open gym will go toward next year's Community Days fireworks display.
Webster Groves did not loose any revenue due to the cancellation of the Community Days fireworks show. Oppermann said the vendor for the display worked with Webster to adjust its contract.
He predicts this year's Webster fireworks event won't draw the same amount of people as the one for Community Days, but he knows it will be cherished by residents, some of whom have even rearranged New Year's Eve plans, so they can enjoy a fabulously lit Webster night.
"I've talked with a lot of local people who were planning to go out of town but when they heard we were having fireworks, they said, 'Okay I'm staying home. We got to get our fireworks fix.'"
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