Fireworks to Light Up Downtown

The man behind Iowa City's annual fireworks celebration for the last 20 years has been busy preparing for Sunday's show in Hubbard Park.

"I’ve been blown over, blown back and blown down but never blown up," Monte Whitlock joked. "Our product is the safest you can get, and we’re far enough away that accidents are minimized."

The vice president of J & M Displays has made a 30-year career of conducting fireworks shows, from Iowa City and Cedar Rapids to as far away as Hong Kong.

"Our company goes to China each year and they make them to our specifications with the highest safety standards," he said. "Fireworks are truly one of those things that you get what you pay for."

The city allocates $25,000 for the annual show, according to Iowa City Clerk Marian Karr. 

The first 10 "Italian style shells" will be set off individually to showcase their uniqueness.

"Because of the shoot site downtown, we can’t use great big shells, so we use smaller shells," he said. "But because Iowa City has a really nice budget, we can use the 10 shells - everything else will be pairs and triples."

Whitlock said the launch site in Hubbard Park across from the Iowa Memorial Union requires them to stick to the higher flying varieties of fireworks.

"They want all the shells up above the capitol - it's strictly an arial show," he said. "Every location has its advantage, and this one is good for downtown and coordinates well with the Jazz Festival."

The fireworks display can be viewed throughout downtown Iowa City, with people encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets to the west lawn of the Pentacrest to view the display.

Karr said the location of the show was moved to Hubbard Park after the flood in 2008 overtook City Park, the former site of the fireworks.

"Of course you have your Jazz Fest people who stay and then more (people) come for the sole purpose of watching the fireworks," she said.

The free event will begin Sunday, July 3 at 9:45 p.m. and last 20 to 30 minutes, Whitlock said.

"It’s for the people and fireworks make people happy," he said. "We feel it’s true family entertainment - you don’t meet too many people who don't like fireworks."

Some streets near the Pentacrest will be closed from 9 p.m. until the fireworks are over and the crowd has cleared the area: Market Street (between Clinton and Madison Streets), Madison Street (between Market and Washington Streets), and Iowa Avenue (between Madison Street and Riverside Drive).