Drafter
Clerk 07/13/2006
Title
AN ORDINANCE relating to the establishment of "no fireworks" zones through citizen petitions; amending Ordinance 6836, Section 11, and K.C.C. 6.26.110 and adding a new section to K.C.C. chapter 6.26.
Body
PREAMBLE:
Empowering citizens to protect their property and wellbeing in accordance with the particular needs of their own local neighborhood is an essential element of good county governance. Governments must properly balance public safety during firework displays with the desire of citizens to observe long-held national traditions.
Many citizens of the county have traditionally celebrated the birth of our nation with the discharge of fireworks. Due to population density, most of the municipalities within King County have banned the use of fireworks on Independence Day to protect the safety of the public.
Many neighborhoods within unincorporated King County have similar dense, urban populations and desire to have similar firework safety measures. The citizens of these neighborhoods have appealed to the council to ban the use of fireworks in order to provide them with firework safety protection. Other neighborhoods within unincorporated King County do not have the same firework safety concerns, and the citizens of these neighborhoods oppose the institution of a county-wide ban on fireworks. Recognizing that different areas of the county have differing desires as to level of limits on the use or discharge of fireworks, the council hereby provides the citizens a method to establish by petition a ban on fireworks within their particular local areas. These areas should be defined by boundaries of local fire protection districts for ease of identification and due to the need for involvement by staff from the fire districts.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY:
NEW SECTION. SECTION 1. There is hereby added to K.C.C. chapter 6.26 a new section to read as follows:
A. The boundaries of the no firework...
Click here for full text