Petition asks to reconsider nightly fireworks over Niagara Falls

An online petition asking authorities to reconsider nightly fireworks over Niagara Falls has garnered over 1,700 signatures, but tourism officials say the majority of people are enjoying the shows.

Niagara Falls Tourism has put on firework shows since May 20 at 10 p.m. every night. It will last until October 10, weather permitting.

“We have heard the concerns we’ve heard the comments, but what we also have is we have thousands and thousands of pictures sent to us every week with the the excitement in children’s eyes, the pleasure that people are deriving from these fireworks,” said Niagara Falls Tourism CEO Janice Thomson

In response to complaints from residents, Niagara Falls mayor Jim Diodati counters that the disruption is minimal and nightly shows are necessary for visitors.

“It’s only a five-minute show. When you go to Disney it’s 16 minutes, when you do Epcot it’s 20 minutes,” said Diodati. “In the past, the confusion was what nights is it when we did alternating nights. And then people that showed up on the wrong night were disappointed or they felt ripped off.”

Thomson tells CityNews that the fireworks are part of rebuilding the city’s tourism industry, which was decimated by the pandemic.

“Niagara falls sees 22 million visits a year. It’s very, very important that it’s our major economy here. [There are] 40,000 people employed in the industry and we’ve now seen what it’s like when they’re not, and when people are struggling,” she said.

“This is our message to the world that we’re open again, come and visit us. And everybody should be grateful that once again people can pay their bills and they can feed their families and this is part of what people expect as part of the experience,” added Diodati.

He said that the 10 p.m. show start is geared towards keeping visitors in town longer – if they’re here that late, they’re likely to stay the night.

People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have been raising concerns with Niagara Falls Tourism about the potential harmful impacts of the fireworks on pets, wildlife, and the environment for several months and have now amped up their efforts with billboards.

They’ve put up three billboards, including one close to the tourism office, that will stay up for four weeks.

“We hope that our ads, one of which is not far from their office, serve as a reminder that not everybody enjoys fireworks. They shoot chemicals and pollutants into the air. They terrify wildlife, they terrify companion animals,” said Rachel Bellis, associate director for local affairs at PETA.

She encouraged people to reach out to their local officials if they are worried about the fireworks. “We encourage residents who are against these firework shows to speak out, to let their elected officials know that they don’t support this.”

Diodati says they’ve tried their best to balance the concerns of locals with the needs of the tourism industry.

“We listen to everybody and we appreciate everybody’s opinion and we try to take a measured approach. That’s why it’s only a five-minute show,” explained Diodati. “But having said that it doesn’t matter what you do, you’ll never make everybody happy all the time. If there was a way to do that, I’d be a miracle worker.”

He added prior to the pandemic, they used to do the fireworks show but did not get as many complaints.

“This has been something that’s gone on for many, many years and something that never caused a stir before. And that’s the part I find most curious. We never received complaints before COVID but now since COVID we do,” said Diodati.

Niagara Falls Tourism says they are looking into alternatives to fireworks like laser or drone shows in the future, but for this season, the shows will go on as planned all the way to Thanksgiving weekend.