‘Let us have some fun’: Students and neighbours in Waterloo divided on St. Patrick’s Day injunction

There’s mixed reaction in Waterloo to an injuction allowing police to detain, arrest and charge anyone who is participating in unsanctioned street parties in that city this weekend. 

It’s in anticipation of a tradition on and around St. Patrick’s Day that sees thousands of students take to the streets in the University District of Waterloo to drink, party and sometimes cause chaos and disorder. 

The injunction order granted to the city by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice will be in effect from Friday, March 14 at 12:00 a.m. to Monday, March 17 at 11:59 p.m.

“The injunction attaches a criminal code charge to what was previously the nuisance by-law. Previously, you would be charged with a ticket. Now you can be charged with a criminal offence for breaching a court order,” said Jen Davis, deputy chief for the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS). 

Safety concerns

Davis says street parties around St. Patrick’s Day are a growing problem in Waterloo and that the injunction will help police to better deal with them. 

“We’ve seen a gradual increase in people attending these events, and we needed to look for new and fresh solutions for how we could ensure public safety,” she said, adding in past years they have received numerous reports of safety concerns in the area in past years. 

“We’ve had previous reports of large crowds standing on garage roofs, multiple incidents of mischief like furniture that has been set on fire on roadways,” she said. 

The University district area includes the Northdale and MacGregor neighbourhoods, the southern portion of the Sugarbush neighbourhood, and a majority of the Uptown neighbourhood. It also includes Waterloo Park. 

Kae Elgie, a MacGregor-Albert Community Association board member, says the street parties have significantly disrupted her neighbourhood in past years. 

“We would see people just being pretty flagrant. People would come and pee on our yards and throw garbage. They would be quite disrespectful,” she said. 

Elgie says the MacGregor-Albert Community Association doesn’t want to stop parties in the University District completely. 

“We’re not against partying. We just want people to do it safely and to have some respect for those of us who have small children and elderly parents,” she said. 

Cost to the city

According to a court ruling made by Justice Micheal Gibson in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, the city has spent approximately $105,000 responding to the street parties. He added that Municipal Enforcement Services has spent more than $940,000 addressing these unsanctioned gatherings since 2017.

Justice Gibson says the injunction does not violate the Charter right to to freedom of peaceful assembly or freedom of association.

“Charter rights are not absolute or unqualified; the Charter does not give any person the legal right to unlawfully trample on the legal rights of others, to threaten public safety, or to disregard lawful municipal enactment,” he said. 

A yearly tradition 

For many students at Wilfrid Laurier University, the street parties are a St. Patrick’s Day tradition.

“St. Patrick’s Day at Waterloo is one of the things that makes it special. I think that is something we should cherish instead of trying to shut it down,” said Robert Chadney.

“I wish they would just let us have some fun,” said Ben Smith.

Jennifer Hurtado, is sceptical whether the injunction will be able to stop all the street parties. 

“I think they’re still going to party either way. I don’t know how they’re going to implement it,” she said.

Davis says the injunction allows police to take a more proactive and preventative approach. 

“We can educate the youth as they start to attend and gather to say that the injunction is in place,” she said. 

“We can encourage them at that point to disperse,” she continued.

Davis added that depending on the response from people gathering, officers would use their discretion to decide whether to start arresting people in violation of the injunction. 

Reflection of Irish culture 

Sue Nally, festival director of the Irish Real Life Festival, says committee members have mixed feelings about the injunction. 

“What concerns us is that people feel that reflects on Irish culture,” she said. 

Nally added that the parties are a nice way to see Irish culture represented in the community. 

“I love seeing all these students wearing green. There’s something very heartwarming about people saying we’re Irish for the day,” she said. 

Nally says she wants the city of Waterloo to take a new approach to handling the parties. She would like more Irish culture incorporated into the street parties.  

“We would love to be more intentional about how it plays out,” she said. “How do we work with what is already happening and not let it reflect on the culture and not let it impact the neighbours?” she added. 

Davis maintains that the goal of the injunction is not just to arrest and charge people but to stop parties before they occur. 

“The biggest priority for us is education and communicating the message to students and others in the defined area,” she said. 

LISTEN | City of Waterloo cracks down on St. Patrick’s Day street parties: