_{Thumbnail photo by Jessica Cejnar Andrews}

(Updated at 3:05 p.m. Thursday to correct the date of the Harbor District’s most recent meeting. Commissioners met on Wednesday.)

Eight months after a fireworks explosion sent 14 people to the hospital, Crescent City Harbor commissioners took official steps to try to curb the bedlam that spills over into their jurisdiction every Independence Day.

After learning that Del Norte County wouldn’t enforce its fireworks ordinance within the Harbor District without a memorandum of understanding, three commissioners approved a resolution Tuesday Wednesday authorizing the proposed agreement. But instead of calling for a ban on all fireworks, they decided that the safe and sane variety should be allowed in the marina while requiring a $5 fee for parking at the harbor.

Commissioners Dan Schmidt and Gerhard Weber voted against the proposed resolution.

Justin Hanks, the Harbor District’s security supervisor, supported the parking fee. He also proposed blocking one of the harbor exits in an effort to avoid the traffic jam that comes after the city’s professional display is finished and everyone decides to leave.

Hanks also advised against a total fireworks ban. While illegal fireworks are a concern — bottle rockets shot off from north of the harbor often wind up on people’s boats, he said — Hanks’ crew often responds to dumpster fires from spent legal fireworks that are still hot. Still, he said, a complete ban might not work.

“If we cold turkey it right now it will cause a lot of chaos,” he told commissioners. “Whatever the Board’s decision is, advertise that now.”

In addition to deciding that safe and sane fireworks are OK in the marina, Harbor commissioners struck a proposal from the resolution allowing the district to retain a portion of the fines collected as a result of its MOU with the county.

Commissioner John Evans, who proposed the parking fee, said he wasn’t concerned about being reimbursed.

“Because we don’t have the administrative infrastructure to enforce our own ordinance, we would fall under the umbrella of the county,” he said. “That way, the sheriff’s office — or law enforcement — if it’s uniform across this entire area, they’re not requesting to enforce a different set of rules when it comes to the harbor versus South Beach.”

Schmidt, an attorney who raised concerns about a fireworks ordinance he and his colleagues rejected last month, suggested that an MOU with the county wasn’t necessary.

At the Harbor District’s Feb. 18 meeting, Schmidt said the ordinance the Board was asked to consider didn’t include a definition of what constitutes a violation. He didn’t want Harbor District staff involved with enforcing the ordinance, though Harbormaster Mike Rademaker said the port lacked the resources to do so, and didn’t like the requirement that most of the fines collected would go to the state.

On Tuesday Wednesday, Schmidt said the county’s ordinance, written based on the State Fire Marshal’s model ordinance, had serious flaws. He said he would be happy to sit down “with anybody” to explain his concerns. He also made a motion to create an ad-hoc committee to delve more deeply into the flaws he felt the county’s regulations contain.

“If we have no local ordinance, no MOU, and there’s a problem, Justin’s people can call the sheriff and they’ll take care of it without the necessity of our own ordinance or MOU,” he said. “I don’t think any of this is necessary.”

Hanks disagreed with Schmidt’s assessment, saying that it’s helpful to point to the Harbor District’s own regulations concerning illegal fireworks in addition to the county’s ordinance.

Rademaker said he spoke with County Counsel Jacqueline Roberts, who recommended the Harbor District work with the county on an MOU.

“She feels like they can’t currently enforce administrative fines [within the Harbor District] unless the Harbor consents to it,” he said. “What this is attempting to do is create an administrative fine structure which, in the opinion of the county, is easier to enforce. You’re not having to go through the courts. The idea is that same process can occur within the harbor but it’s administered by the county.”

Commissioner Annie Nehmer seconded Evans’ motion to remove the total ban on fireworks from the resolution as well as the revenue-sharing clause. She said her family partakes in the festivities every year, including watching the festivities unfold on South Beach and North Beach. Though she agreed that things have gotten worse each year, she argued individuals should exercise their own self agency.

“There was a dangerous hazard on South Beach that we had no control over, and as a parent [and] individual, we left,” she said.

While there is an ordinance in the county against illegal fireworks, Nehmer said Hanks shouldn’t approach people who violate those rules.

Evans suggested that the Harbor District could erect barricades and take other preventative measures to block off certain areas to prepare for the Fourth of July.

Weber argued that if the Harbor District were to ban all fireworks, including the safe and sane kind, it would need to provide another diversion. He said if he was celebrating Independence Day at the harbor with his family, he’d probably confront anyone trying to create their own fireworks display.

“I’ll say blow yourself up on South Beach. It’s not that far, grab your stuff and do whatever you need to do,” he said. “Here it’s a family safe zone. If we have other businesses joining in — you have events happening at the county fair that are enjoyable for families and kids especially — if we do it early enough maybe we can get a few rides in there.”

Rademaker said he’d bring the proposed MOU back before the Board of Commissioners by its next meeting on March 26.

Under the county’s ordinance, those who sell, transport or use fireworks that explode, go into the air or move on the ground in an uncontrollable manner are subject to administrative fines of at least $1,000 for a first offense. Those fines escalate to $3,000 for repeat offenses.

The Harbor District’s MOU follows Crescent City’s update to its fireworks ordinance earlier this month. Originally established in 2012, the city’s ordinance now aligns with the county’s and the state’s model ordinance.