Since Lincoln's 4th of July fireworks display moved to Oak Lake Park seven years ago, there has been an ongoing debate about whether it should ever return to Holmes Lake.

In a 10/11 viewer poll Monday night, 69 percent of people said they want fireworks returned to Holmes. Meanwhile, 31 percent think the celebration should stay at Oak Lake Park.

Officials with Lincoln Parks and Recreation said for now, the logistics of the celebration make Oak Lake Park a better, easier place to host the fireworks show.

A crowd of 30,000 plus watched the booms and blasts of Lincoln's July 5th Fireworks show. That's an Oak Lake record according to Jerry Shorney with city Parks and Rec.

"We parked cars where we haven't parked cars before," said Shorney, director of operations for Parks and Rec.

That's a trend he says has been growing ever since fireworks moved to Oak Lake. It's also a trend he says Holmes couldn't support.

"As the crowds grew, it became harder and harder to move people around," said Shorney. "What we find out here [Oak Lake] is we have two or three arterials moving people... logistically we're very happy being close to Cornhusker Highway, Sun Valley Blvd. and I-180."

That's no comfort to south-east Lincoln residents who miss the good old days at Holmes.

"I just prefer it on this side of town," said SE Lincoln resident Betty J. Dankleff. "To be fair, they could alternate it from north to south every other year."

But there's mixed reaction to that from city leaders.

"The city has a great fireworks celebration and everybody gets to enjoy the 4th of July. So I'd like to let it play out a little bit more to see how it turns out," said Lincoln City Councilman Adam Hornung.

"I'd like to let us take a look at maybe rotating it and bringing it back to Holmes at some date," said Lincoln City Councilwoman Jayne Snyder.

"I'd have to look at the cost to the city, if there is a cost difference," said Lincoln City Councilman Gene Carroll.

Shorney also said Holmes Lake has another disadvantage. The Holmes area has become increasingly developed, leading to tighter safety regulations for fireworks. At Oak Lake, the looser restrictions mean a bigger bang and according to Shorney a better show.

"We had to be careful of the wind direction [at Holmes]. Out here we don't have too many neighbors to worry about," said Shorney. "We get a diverse group of folks who come out and enjoy this.

Shorney said at Oak Lake the city can fire off 10-inch firework shells. At Holmes Lake he said they would be limited to 8 inch shells at the largest, with the majority being 6 inches.

Shorney also said the city can use Haymarket Park and downtown parking garages as extra places for people to park and watch fireworks. That's not the case at Holmes.