Auburn officials recently told members of the Muckleshoot Tribe that the city would not pursue a total ban on fireworks for at least one year, based on the tribe’s willingness to work with police and shorten the hours of operation of the tribal fireworks discharge area to 10 p.m. weekdays and 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

Judging by the number of fireworks-related calls the city has logged to date and the relative peace and quiet on Muckleshoot Hill, something seems to be working.

As of last Friday, Auburn Mayor Pete Lewis reported that he had received only three fireworks-related complaints, dramatically down, he said, from the long list he has typically accumulated by this time of year.

“I’m not sure I understand all the ramifications of a possible ban to the tribe, but it is policing the heck out of that discharge area. And when they say it closes at 10 p.m. on weekdays and 11 p.m., on weekends, man, they mean it. It is closed,” Lewis said.

“So far the tribe has been really helpful,” Auburn Police Chief Bob Karnofski recently told members of the Municipal Services Committee. “We’ve also seen a drop in the number of people that are in the discharge area over last year.”

But because this particular July 4 falls on a Friday, the kickoff to a three-day weekend that forecasters predict will be warm and dry, there is still some nail biting going on despite the current calm.

“July 4 is on a Friday, and no one has to go to work the next day,” Lewis noted. “I’m especially worried about the one night. Because the city can handle it until about 10 p.m., but there is that period between 10 p.m. and midnight when there are just not enough police. If I called in the police from two or three cities, there still wouldn’t be enough.”

Since the City of Auburn has put any fireworks ban on the shelf while it waits to judge the effectiveness of the tribe’s actions, the rule remains what it has been for the last three years – if the firework goes up or blows up, it is illegal in the city of Auburn.