Fencing placed in University District as police prepare for St. Patrick’s Day

Regional police are getting ready to crack down on any St. Patrick’s Day parties this weekend as the City of Waterloo already set up a large amount of fencing along Ezra Street and the surrounding area. The city puts up fencing every year to try to prevent large unsanctioned gatherings from forming.

According to the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS), it spans to include the Northdale and MacGregor neighbourhoods, the southern portion of the Sugarbush community as well as the majority of Uptown. The fencing also wraps around Waterloo Park.

Waterloo and WRPS said earlier this week an Injunction Order was granted by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, which runs from Friday, March 12 at midnight to March 17 at 11:59 p.m. when the holiday ends.

It means anyone caught taking part in rowdy unsanctioned celebrations could be arrested, detained or charged with breach of a court order.

That injunction doesn’t just include the University District as it includes other adjacent neighbourhoods, and parts of Uptown Waterloo.

The City of Waterloo has declared a “Community Safety Event” and parking ban in place for parts of the city that fall under the court injunction order. Traffic and parking bylaw will be enforced through the weekend.

It’s all part of the city’s Post-Secondary District Safety Initiative which is a partnership with WRPS, Wilfrid Laurier University, University of Waterloo, Conestoga College and Region of Waterloo Paramedic Services.

Inside the Injunction Order reads, “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 enactments: Ottawa, at para. 49. (Contrary to the notorious Beastie Boys song, there is no right to party.)”

It goes on to say that an infringement on Charter rights is justified in these St. Patrick’s Day circumstance where law enforcement is needed.

It concludes with, “The selfishness and indifference to public safety and the welfare of other citizens manifest in the show of defiance of the By-Law and Bacchanalian excess without regard to the consequences to others that the SPD gatherings have been in the past, and are likely to be in the proximate future in 2025, are disturbing.”

It cites a waste of public resources as one of the problems. In years past WRPS have spent hundreds of thousands policing unsanctioned street gatherings, which tend to take up a large amount of ambulances, paramedics and police resources through the weekend.

More information about charges and penalties that may occur over the weekend can be found on the City of Waterloo’s website.