TOWN OF BUCHANAN, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The Buchanan town board has decided the town will host an international fireworks convention next summer, despite community concerns.
The Pyrotechnics Guild International held its convention at Wisconsin International Raceway in 2010, which caused over 200 complaints from community members.
Discussion from the board followed a lively public forum.
“Greg, you can smirk all you want,” Town Plan Commission Chairperson Ted Erdmann said. “None of you guys were on the board at that time. You don’t remember all the complaints that were coming in here at that time.”
Erdmann said Buchanan sees few benefits since the hotels are located in neighboring municipalities. But Chris Van Gompel says the wide appeal of the show means a return is worth it.
“It’s a fantastic event,” Van Gompel said. “It puts our humble little town on the world map. It’s been here before. It’s gone over well. I have people asking me all the time, when is it coming back to Wisconsin.”
PGI had announced in September that it was excited to host its fourth convention at WIR. But after news broke, concerns started to come in from residents.
“Yeah it’s a great show and everything else but I know last time there was a lot of complaints from Kaukauna residents on noise and there’s a whole lot of new homes over there closer to the racetrack now that weren’t there 12 years ago,” Resident Dennis Berg said.
Residents in favor of bringing the event back also made their voices heard. PGI member Bill Koeler says it’s an impressive show, with a popularity that outweighs noise concerns.
“Pyrotechnics international members come in from all over the world, not just from Wisconsin, not just from the United States,” Koeler said. “They bring in many millions of dollars to the local economy. And when I say many, I mean more than just one or two.
The Outagamie County Sheriff’s Office logged roughly 200 calls regarding noise associated with the PGI event. The Town of Buchanan logged 56 email and phone complaints during that time as well.
Several complaints referred to the noise and timing of the fireworks, saying the explosions were too loud and too late. Others mentioned having post-traumatic stress disorder from the military and how the loud fireworks brought flashbacks. One community member even said that if PGI was ever allowed to do a show like 2010’s again, there would be a lawsuit.
At the beginning of November, though, PGI posted on its website, saying it couldn’t commit to the Fox Cities after all. However, the convention’s applications for the required permits were being filed with the town that week.
Before the town received those permits, though, they had already received concerns from the community. But the board also received a letter of support from the Fox Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau.
The next step for PGI is applying for a special exception permit as well for camping.
The event, which will run from Aug. 5 to 11, is expected to bring up to 10,000 spectators for the public performances. Even the displays that are only for convention members are expected to bring in at least 1,500 people.
The board voted three to two on the decision.
