On St. Patrick’s Day in 2018, about 22,000 people attended an unsanctioned street party on Ezra Avenue.
Illegal public parties last year came with a hefty price tag—over $1 million—to ensure public safety.
“From a policing perspective, you know, in the range of half a million dollars, but in totality, unsanctioned events are in the range of $1 million for all the partners,” explains Police Chief Bryan Larkin.
Last April, a task force was created to work towards ending these street parties. The goal is to understand why they happen, and look at how they are impacting the community.
The team will look for solutions for two to five years.
“From my perspective $1 million could go to a lot of other programs within the community,” says Mark Dykstra, co-chair of the force.
In the last 10 months, the group has met five times. It’s hoping to open a platform to engage the public, the universities and stakeholders.
It aims to have recommendations to council by the fall, and finalized recommendations by early 2020.
