'And the rockets red glare' will be bigger, brighter this Fourth of July in Bradenton

Due in part to its longstanding relationship with the annual Bradenton Area River Regatta, Zambelli International has signed on to take over the Fourth of July fireworks show over the Manatee River.

Bradenton, Palmetto and Manatee County each pay a third of the cost for the annual show, and the three entities opted to let the previous fireworks company's contract expire while bumping up contributions for what they feel will be a better show.

"We raised it specifically because we wanted Zambelli," Bradenton Mayor Wayne Poston said.

Palmetto Mayor Shirley Groover Bryant said the contributions increase the total amount to about $40,000.

"We sent out request for a quote several times over the past three years and this is the first year Zambelli responded," Bryant said. "We all decided that it was time to contribute more because we hadn't done so in 20 years. So with costs going up, the show was only going to get smaller and smaller."

Bryant said it's exciting to have Zambelli on board for the Fourth of July celebration.

"They do such a great job at the regatta and I think they really like working in this area," she said. "People also have raved about Zambelli's show because of the way they synchronize the music with the fireworks, so we are looking forward to a great show."

Formula 3 racing joins the regatta

The 2019 Bradenton Area River Regatta is scheduled for Feb. 9 and will bring in Formula 3 racing to join the Formula 2 Powerboat Super League Series.

According to ISM USA president and co-founder Mike Fetchko, Formula 3 representatives came to the 2018 regatta and wanted to be a part of the festivities.

"More boat racing was consistently on our exit interviews," Fetchko said. "Our input from the fans is they wanted less jet ski racing and more boat racing, so we are doubling our boat races and plan to enlarge the track."

The jet ski stunt shows will continue and negotiations are ongoing for who will headline the regatta concerts, but a deal is close, Fetchko said.

The regatta was initially scheduled for Feb. 2, but Bryant said it would have interfered with the end of the Manatee County Fair and the rodeo finale, "So everybody really worked well and cooperated to make sure that didn't happen."

Regatta creates $7.1 million of economic impact from out-of-county visitors

According to an economic impact study from the 2018 Bradenton Area River Regatta, visitors to Manatee County spent $7.1 million.

The study, performed by Research Data Services Inc., reports crowd estimates at 100,000 with almost 62 percent being local, 26.7 percent coming for the day and 11.4 percent of regatta attendees staying in town for up to four days.

"Importantly, due to the concentration of viewers in the core urban section of Bradenton/Palmetto, close to 80 percent of the event's impact benefited this sector of Manatee County," the report states.

Almost 87 percent of those attending the regatta from out of town just for the day reported they will return while 83.3 percent of overnight guests said they would be back.

This story was originally published May 14, 2018 at 12:39 PM with the headline "'And the rockets red glare' will be bigger, brighter this Fourth of July in Bradenton."