No Fourth of July fireworks in Paso Robles? Paso Pops event canceled after 4 years
The North County may not get a Fourth of July fireworks show for the first time in four years.
Paso Pops, an annual San Luis Obispo Symphony concert and fireworks display, was canceled in 2020 due to financial issues and the event’s lack of growth, said Stephen Cass, event chairman and treasurer for the Paderewski Festival.
The event provided the only Fourth of July fireworks show in the North County — the other professional San Luis Obispo County shows take place on the coast in Pismo Beach, Cayucos and Cambria.
The first Paso Pops, held in 2016, was conceived after the city’s free Fourth of July fireworks show was canceled in 2015, Cass told The Tribune that year. He modeled the show after the famous Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular.
The event was put on by the Paderewski Festival, a nonprofit organization that holds an annual series of events and concerts to celebrate Polish pianist and composer Ignacy Jan Paderewski in November.
Paso Pops was originally held at the Paso Robles Horse Park, but organizers later moved it to the Paso Robles Event Center, home to the California Mid-State Fair, to cut costs.
A low growth, high-risk event
Cass hoped the event would draw more spectators over time, noting that 4,000 people attended the first year, and 4,000 people attended in 2019, he said.
Paso Pops generally broke even, but it didn’t turn a profit, Cass said.
“We weren’t really growing our audience,” Cass told The Tribune on Wednesday.
Paso Pops cost about $200,000 to host at the Paso Robles Event Center — ticket sales covered about 75% of the expenses and sponsors covered 10 to 15%, with beer, wine and raffle sales covering the remainder, Cass said.
If the event were to hit a snag due to weather or other circumstances, it would hurt the nonprofit, he said.
“It would basically kill the Paderewski Festival,” Cass said.
Cass said he’s spoken to other local venues that may be interested in hosting a similar fireworks and symphony show, but nothing has been finalized.
“The event was a lot of fun,” he said. “I’m happy it at least broke even.”
This story was originally published February 12, 2020 at 1:06 PM.
