End of a party era: WRPS axe St. Paddy’s celebrations on Ezra Avenue

There’s no use fighting for your right to party on Ezra Avenue this St. Paddy’s Day – as Regional Police say ‘no more’ to the annual sanctioned street-party.

WRPS Chief Bryan Larkin says the demand on their police service is too great, and they simply can’t sustain what they’ve been doing.

“In many ways – we’re the victims of our own success. We had amazing collaboration between everyone, and the reality is it’s just grown beyond what we can manage.”

In years past, crowds of around 15,000 students have swarmed the Waterloo street for the celebrations.

Larkin says there were also a few concerns.

“Last year, the levels of intoxication and impact on our healthcare system was the most we’ve ever witnessed or seen. There’s also the concern that we’re one incident away from something more significant – and that’s our responsibility .. public safety,” says Larkin. “We encourage people to celebrate – but we have entertainment districts, and licensed establishments for that. That’s where people should be celebrating – the street party is unlawful, and it needs to stop.”

This is a major shift in attitude from previous years – where police hoped to contain the party, and the aim was on respect and safety.

WRPS partners – the Universities, Student Unions, By-law, Fire Services, and Paramedics – will head out March 7th for a collaborative safety effort.

“We’ll have a door-knocker program, and our message is clear – be smart, stay safe, be respectful. We’ll also let them know of our expectations, and we’ll be doing lots of education and awareness. Behind the scenes – we have a pretty significant operational plans, and we’ll be bringing in an outside police agency for support for the first time.”

Larkin says they’ve always had a firm, but fair approach when it comes to St. Patrick’s Day.

“One of the problems we’ve had is just the volume of partygoers. With more staff for this year, we can be more firm on liquor licence violations, and make sure there are no unsanctioned street parties. We’ll be shifting our hours of operation to make sure we have appropriate staffing levels.”

As for how WRPS plan to curb the large gathering – Larkin would not share specifics, but said there will be a greater police presence, as they’ll be joined by the Public Safety Unit from Peel Regional Police to help deal with the crowds.

“Behind the scenes – we have a pretty significant operation plan with all of our partners and this year we will see a significant enhanced police presences, including for the first time we will be bringing in an outside police agency to provide support because we can no longer meet the demands.”

Larkin first hinted they would be changing tactics for street parties, after Laurier’s homecoming party drew huge numbers in late September.

Typically, homecoming does not draw the same number as St. Paddy’s, but around 12,000 people packed Ezra Avenue in 2017.

Homecoming weekend came at a cost of nearly $45,000 in paid overtime and training for WRPS and EMS – while the weekend was also a significant strain on emergency resources. 

Despite four extra paramedics on the ground in the University area on Friday night, and as many as six on Saturday, our Region’s paramedic services were stretched to the brink during Laurier’s homecoming.

According to the Region of Waterloo Paramedic Services – we were in a code red situation for a combined 45 minutes over the weekend. A code red occurs when there are no ambulances available for dispatch in the entire region.

The Region was also in a code yellow situation for a combined 6.5 hours over the weekend, which occurs when three or fewer ambulances are available.

This year – St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Saturday, March 17th.

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today