Pine family considers closing longtime fireworks stand

Dwight Hilpman has taken his family to buy fireworks at the Pine family fireworks stand for at least 20 years.

“It’s got a great reputation. It’s an institution,” the Lawrence resident said Sunday as he completed another year of purchases at the stand north of Lawrence at the intersection of U.S. Highways 59 and 24, better known as Teepee Junction.

But the Pine family tradition of selling fireworks in or near Lawrence since 1948 may be nearing an end.

“That’s a personal thing,” said Jerry Pine, 49, who helps continue the family tradition started by his father, Howard. “I would be willing to go several more years, but there are a lot of pressures.”

James Pine stocks fireworks at the Pine family fireworks stand, located in the Teepee Junction parking lot. This may be the last year for the longtime family business as city and county ordinances set more limits for fireworks vendors.

One thing that probably won’t be back next year is the old wooden stand the Pines have used to sell their fireworks since 1970. State and county laws are requiring fireworks stands to be made of fire-retardant materials, and tents made of such materials are becoming the standard.

“When I was in junior high Dad and I went out and bought lumber and laid out a structure to build,” Jerry Pine said. “Back in 1969 there weren’t too many tents. They were still mostly wooden structures.”

Howard Pine originally sold fireworks out of his main business, Howard Pine’s Garden Center and Greenhouse, 1320 N. Third St.

Selling and shooting off fireworks has changed considerably over the years, Jerry Pine said. State, city and county regulations have become stricter.

“It’s just not as much fun as it used to be,” Pine said. “The pressures are growing more and more each year, and you hear how bad fireworks are.”

The city of Lawrence banned fireworks two years ago, and that initially cut into sales, although sales have since rebounded some, he said. Although there is no current talk about it, if the city annexes the Teepee Junction area, that will most likely be the end of Pine fireworks sales. They aren’t interested in finding another location.

“This is a pretty good location,” Jim Pine, Jerry’s brother, said. “A lot of our customers have been coming here for years.”