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interchange, including all on and off ramps. Drivers could slow down on the freeway to take a quick look, causing potential rear end collisions. Drivers could also make unsafe lane changes trying to suddenly exit from the freeway to get to the site event. Drivers might also decide to pull over onto the freeway shoulder, causing other drivers to slow down to see what the emergency is. The CHP requested that Council consider another location. Mr. Wolfe said another suggestion for a fireworks display was to have the City sponsor an event at the Fairgrounds. Information about the potential cost, excluding the cost for police and fire personnel, has been included in the staff report. Ms. McGovern asked it would help the situation to have the City Manager and the Chief Executive Officer of the Alameda County Fairgrounds submit a letter to the Alameda County Sheriff and request that the fireworks show be resumed at the Fairgrounds? Mayor Hosterman concurred with Ms. McGovern's request. Rick Pickering, Chief Executive Officer of the Alameda County Fairgrounds, said there is always an opportunity to ask the Sheriff to reconsider it. The Sheriff is on written record as well as the City Police Department and the Livermore Pleasanton Fire Department in the after action report that occurred after the shooting incident in 1998. The most important point in the Sheriff's after action report was the illegal hand held fireworks, which are a natural attractant to any aerial show in the Bay Area. He pointed out that the non-profit Fair Association bears all of the costs and are charged more than a quarter of a million dollars a year from the County Sheriff's Department in order to provide deputies and services at the Fairgrounds during the 17-day event. The second issue with a fireworks display at the Fairgrounds is the issue of overcrowding and without an aerial show, a large day for the Fair is 35,000 to 40,000 people. The other aspect that the Sheriff's report pointed out is with that many people in one proximity when the fireworks start to go off everyone begins to jockey for a position for the best view, and it is when someone bumps the person beside them significant other people become agitated, which is a part of the overcrowding issue mentioned in the report. The Fairgrounds purchases insurance through a joint powers authority and they are greatly concerned if the Fairgrounds chose not to follow the recommendation of the Sheriff's Department. The operating agreement with the County requires the Fairground to fall under the jurisdiction of the Sheriff's Department during the annual Fair. He informed the public that the 1998 shooting incident almost bankrupt the Fair Association and not only impacted the Association, it impacted many of the Fair's vendors. It also affected the next six fairs in California that took place after this incident. In addition, many of the other shows that are held at the Fairgrounds were negatively impacted by public perception that the Fairgrounds were not safe. In response to an inquiry by Mayor Hosterman, Mr. Pickering said the Fair Association has done many things to make the Fair safer. He believed there might be an opportunity in the future to resume the fireworks. Ms. McGovern commended the Fair Association for making the Fairgrounds safe and based on that, she thought it might be possible to discuss with the Sheriff the possibilities of resuming the July 4t"fireworks show. Mr. Pickering believed there was an opportunity to ask the Sheriff to reconsider resuming the July 4th fireworks show. If there were an opportunity to try it, it would be when the fourth of July falls on a Wednesday versus connecting it to a three-day weekend. He noted that in the 2007, the fourth of July falls on a Wednesday. Pleasanton City Council 28 09/06/05 Minutes