Fireworks Cash Grab "No Big Deal," Middletown Mayor Says

There’s no explosive controversy between Middletown and Red Bank over who’s paying the law enforcement overtime tab for the KaBoom fireworks.

That is what Middletown Mayor Tony Fiore says; and, he’s firing off a few final comments and facts of his own on the subject that he says should be future considerations, but are “really no big deal.”

It all started when at a pre-Fourth of July meeting that he thought Red Bank and/or KaBoom should foot part of the overtime bill incurred by Middletown to police overflow crowds and traffic that spill into and out of the township from the July 3 fireworks. The launch point of the show that brings in more than 100,000 people is on the Navesink River, some of the banks of which are in Middletown.

Fiore asked for a tally of his township police overtime costs logged for approximately 7 to 10 p.m. that day. The cost estimate he got, he said, was for between  $12,000 and $15,000.

Mayor Fiore had agreed with Scharfenberger that he, in the township’s stead, should arrange a meeting with and/or write a letter to Red Bank officials expressing the wish. He sent the letter last week. But not before Red Bank officials got wind of the sparking controversy.

When Red Bank officials heard that the request was coming their way, the response was an emphatic no, “This Bank is dry.” The contention behind the “no” was that the borough just couldn’t afford to foot the Middletown bill or any portion thereof. More specificially, Red Bank officials pointed out, the non-profit fireworks fundraising KaBoom organization is the entity that pays for enforcement, not the borough (of Red Bank).

KaBoom also funds a regional group of officers from the surrounding areas, a few of whom came from the Middletown Police Department. Some of the officers and appointed security patrol the event without pay as well.

Fine, said Fiore. However, this year was the first year KaBoom charged admission to Riverside Gardens, West Front Street, to view the event from the best vantage point.

“That changed everything in our minds,” he said. “We understand fully that this event is fundraised for by KaBoom and had some concerns because this is the first year they charged for viewing. They didn’t include ancillary townships as part of their fundraising goal, but we think they should probably consider doing that in the future.”

The mayor’s feeling is that KaBoom was already anticipating paying the pool of law enforcers to patrol the event anyway, so it would be logical, especially since people were charged, to share that wealth to help the neighboring township foot its substantial police overtime bill. The bill, he reiterated, is generated by an event that is privately funded. Since those funds, many of which were garnered for the first time this year by admission prices, they should go toward all costs incurred by the ticketed event, including neighboring police overtime.

“We never asked before, because they never charged before,” Fiore said. “So, we asked. All we did was ask. We asked them to consider it in the future.”

Red Bank officials have said that Middletown residents enjoy the fireworks just as much, so they can suffer the extra policing costs.

“It’s just a benign issue right now,” Fiore added. “But there are some facts worth considering: KaBoom, yes, paid for some Middletown police to patrol their event; but that was to do security in Red Bank, not Middletown. We incur all the excess traffic (and crowd) on the Middletown side. It should just be factored into their costs/fundraising if they’re charging for viewing. Yes, Middletown residents benefit from the fireworks, but not all. And, some pay for to see them now. In my letter I only asked them to consider it. That’s all. Consider it.”

There is no word yet on approximately how many fireworks crowd- and traffic-related summonses were issued by Middletown and the price to pay by violators.