{"id":279395,"date":"2026-06-26T22:17:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T22:17:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/279395\/"},"modified":"2026-06-26T22:17:08","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T22:17:08","slug":"bronx-fireworks-extravaganza-celebrates-new-orchard-beach-pavilion-bronx-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/279395\/","title":{"rendered":"Bronx fireworks extravaganza celebrates new Orchard Beach pavilion\u00a0 \u2013 Bronx Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson led the annual Bronx Fireworks Extravaganza<\/a> Thursday night at Orchard Beach, celebrating the United States\u2019 250th anniversary.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With support from DJ Lex, WBLS\u2019 own Dr. Bob Lee emceed the event, introducing speakers and hyping up the crowd of local politicians and families. Food and drink was provided to pre-approved attendees, though many Bronxites stood and sat directly outside the event to enjoy the festivities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

DJ Pastor Roger Hambrick performed the national anthem, \u201cThe Star-Spangled Banner.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\"\"\n<\/p>\n

Julius Drake, Director of Development at the Bronx Tourism Council, said \u201cTonight is an opportunity to come together as [a] community to celebrate our nation\u2019s history, honor the spirit of the Bronx, and enjoy an evening of family, entertainment, and pride.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

After being introduced by Dr. Lee, Borough President Gibson thanked all past and present veterans and military families for their sacrifice.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also take a moment to recognize many of our fallen soldiers that serve in war that went to battle for this country and did not make it home. We honor their lives and their legacy,\u201d Gibson said. She recognized attendee Emily Toro, whose son died in the line of duty.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gibson also announced the return and introduction of multiple borough-wide initiatives, including \u201cSavor The Bronx<\/a>\u201d a 7-day event offering deals to highlight local restaurants from July 6 to July 12.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Additionally, Gibson celebrated the completion of the transformation of the Orchard Beach pavilion<\/a>, which cost $114 million, and is now ADA compliant. The first phase of this extended restoration process took nearly four years, and though Gibson expects the second phase to continue into the next Borough President\u2019s term, she promises to make a large contribution to start the process off correctly.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a ramp, and we are now going to have a new concession stand with restaurants, and incredible Bronx entrepreneurs that will have amazing food and desserts and eateries that represent our beautiful borough,\u201d Gibson said. She also happily announced that the bathrooms of the Main Stage area (sections 8 and 9) at Orchard Beach have been renovated.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Borough President also announced the return of the 2026 summer concert series, which will start on Sunday, July 12 at the Main Stage area. The series will continue every Sunday through Labor Day weekend, and cover various genres (bachata, hip-hop, old school.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mark Levine, New York City\u2019s Comptroller, was introduced by Gibson and expressed similar sentiments about the culmination of phase one of the renovation project.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOrchard Beach is better than ever. What a great way to celebrate 250 years. So I\u2019m proud to be out here with you this year. I\u2019ll be back here every year. I love the Bronx,\u201d Levine said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\n<\/p>\n

City Council member Amanda Far\u00edas told the crowd, \u201cNights like tonight remind us of our diversity, of our resilience, and the pride we have in our communities we call home. That\u2019s what makes all of this so special.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Following the speeches, Uptown Royalty NYC performed for the crowd, prior to a fireworks display that was visible from all over Orchard Beach.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

One attendee, Hasan, has only been in New York City for two years, but has been loving it so far, and gleefully waved one of the provided American flags at the event.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOrchard Beach is just a part of New York City where I can vibe, be happy, drink, get a sunbathe and I love New York. I love [the] Bronx,\u201d said Hasan.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

Anna, another attendee, said she\u2019s attended the event yearly ever since the inclusion of fireworks, and that the United States\u2019 250th anniversary makes her proud to be an American.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve evolved. We have grown. Jr means that we have embraced many, many countries coming into our country, which has expanded us and has us being here for 250 years. We have grown, and I\u2019m looking forward to seeing a lot of more growth,\u201d said Anna.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\n<\/p>\n

Council member Far\u00edas emphasized the importance of embracing diversity and community when times may feel bleak.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to continue to look out for each other. Whether that\u2019s making sure the kids don\u2019t go past the street corner when it\u2019s too dark or protecting one another from the larger forces at hand, like I.C.E., that are coming into our neighborhoods,\u201d Far\u00edas said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Later, Gibson said she recognizes the event as a moment of reflection to appreciate how far the country has come in fighting for civil rights, LGBT rights, women\u2019s rights and human rights.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that times right now under the White House administration seem very challenging, very depressing and heartbreaking, because everything our ancestors have fought for they\u2019re trying to overturn,\u201d Gibson said. \u201cAnd I think for me, as a Borough President, as a woman of color, as a black woman, that it reminds me that I\u2019m my ancestors wildest dreams.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson led the annual Bronx Fireworks Extravaganza Thursday night at Orchard Beach, celebrating the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":279396,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[4633,107344,107345,2099,8406,75,84,83,9,24,63,93025,45146,6707],"class_list":["post-279395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-manhattan","tag-bronx-borough-president","tag-bronx-fireworks","tag-bronx-fireworks-extravaganza","tag-family-friendly-events","tag-fireworks","tag-manhattan","tag-manhattan-headlines","tag-manhattan-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-orchard-beach","tag-things-to-do-in-the-bronx","tag-vanessa-gibson"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/279395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=279395"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/279395\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/279396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=279395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=279395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=279395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}