The Lake Murray 4th of July Music Fest and Fireworks began as a grassroots community effort in 1997. This year will mark the end of an era for the community because after speaking with City of San Diego officials, the 501c3 Lake Murray Fireworks and Music Fest Committee was told that the city would no longer allow permitting for this event.
Committee member and past president and Melissa DeMarco said this event started with a smaller version, and after a short hiatus, in 2017, the committee rebuilt the neglected playground by raising nearly $300,000, and the small group decided to bring back the fireworks.
“From 2017 to now, except for the two COVID years, we have been doing the fireworks and music festival at the Lake Murray playground,” she said. “We have anywhere between 3,000 to 5,000 people of a rotating crowd. It is the neighbors, the people who play little league, softball league. It is a nice day to get together.”
The event is from 11 a.m. -9 p.m., with the fireworks beginning at 9 p.m.
DeMarco said the city of San Diego funds nothing, only approves the permits for the event.
“What makes this different from other events is that it is 100% community funded,” she said. “We raise around $100,000 each year to put this event on. The interesting part, when we started this in 2017, the event cost about $70,000. This year we are looking at a budget of around $110,000. It has grown exponentially and much of that has to do with the city permits and requirements.”
DeMarco said this is firmly the last fireworks event the committee will hold.
“We had a meeting with about 20 plus city officials, which is weird because we have never had that happen before. Normally it is like a ‘rubber stamp,’ to keep this event going meeting, but this year was different,” she said. “They basically let us know that they would not extend the courtesy to us for us to have our event with fireworks anymore.”
DeMarco said at the meeting that they were told there were costs to the city for cleanup, which the committee had no knowledge or proof of because they clean up after the fireworks. She said they also test the water after the fireworks to ensure there is no negative impact on the lake.
“We have never been made aware of any impact on the lake, so we asked the city if they would help us do a drone show, and help bring the cost down on the permits, and they said, ‘No, it does not work that way.’ They were unwilling to meet us anywhere in the middle,” she said. “At this point, to do a drone show, it will cost the same as the fireworks event, and we are not getting any financial help from the city when it comes to how expensive their permits and requirements are. We just cannot keep trying to fundraise for this, so this committee and group will be done. I am not saying that someone may come in next year and save the day, but everything that we have been told by the city is that they will not extend this courtesy to us again.”
DeMarco said they are planning this year just as previous events, with five bands, eight different food vendors, two national anthem singers to kick off the event and before the fireworks.
“The fireworks show will be about 17 to 18 minutes, and it can be seen from all around the lake, so everyone from La Mesa, San Carlos, Del Cerro, Allied Gardens, gets to see this and be a park of it,” she said.
DeMarco said they are still in planning, and with the expenses being extremely high they are still looking for community donations to make the most of the event in its last year. Donations can be made at lakemurrayfireworks.org.
“We are really said to see it go,” she said. “It is an important community event, and I think that unfortunately, it does not bring in the same tourism dollars that the Big Bay Boom does, and we are not a priority and that is too bad. But it is what it is.”
The 4th of July Lake Murray Music Fest and Fireworks will be held at the Lake Murray Playground from 11 a.m. – 9 p.m., featuring food from Corbin’s Q, Dang Brothers Pizza, Doggus Gus, Finest Sweet Treats, La Casita De Verno, Seven Seas, Slice of Life Catering, and Tiki Treats. Music performances include No Clue, the Steve Pandis band, 8 track Highway, Bill Magee Blues Band, and Republic of Music.
