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THE SUNCOAST NEWS

Published: June 7, 2008

Tarpon Springs officials moved with blinding speed to thank the local couple who on Tuesday morning who rescued the city's 2008 municipal fireworks display with an $18,000 donation. We, however, would certainly like to offer a few words of praise for Dave and Lisa Ulgenalp.

As many people know, Tarpon Springs officials decided last month that given the current economic conditions and the impact they are having on municipal finances, the $25,000 in the 2008 city budget for fireworks needed to be shifted to a higher priority. The money is being used to get the city's AM radio station, which is supposed to broadcast emergency information, back on the air. The money will pay to fix the equipment breakdown that has rendered the station incapable of broadcasting since last November and move its antenna tower to a location that should boost its range.

When the Ulgenalps, who operate three restaurants in Central Florida, read news of accounts of the cancellation of the fireworks show, they were quick to respond with what Mayor Beverley Billiris, during Tuesday night's City Commission meeting, called a "generous" gift. Money from another private source, antenna firm Global Tower Partners, is paying for the patriotic-themed party the city originally set up as an alternative to fireworks. Still, we don't imagine the Ulgenalps or Global Tower have made an open-ended commitment to fund the city's July 4th celebrations. Fortunately, city officials have plenty of time to mull their options.

With no one forecasting a major recovery in economic activity and local tax revenue, they should look for others in the private sector to help share Independence Day costs for 2009.

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