Queen's, Kingston brace for St. Patrick's Day parties

Police and bylaw officials in Kingston, Ont., are working on their St. Patrick's Day plans without the help of a report on how to handle street parties — a report Queen's University said would be ready by last fall.

Last February, the university launched a task force to address large, unsanctioned gatherings that have seen hundreds of students dressed in green flood city streets in recent years.

A statement at the time acknowledged the parties put students and residents at risk and were a "burden" on local law enforcement and hospitals. It promised a report and recommendations would be ready by September 2022.

Just over a year after it was commissioned, there's still no sign of the full report.

"I hope the task force will speed it up," said Sydenham Coun. Conny Glenn, the councillor for the university area.

"I'm just going to call on my partners over at Queen's to get us that report," she added.

A spokesperson for the university did not answer directly when asked whether the report has been completed. 

"We have nothing more to share at this time and are continuing our efforts," spokesperson Julie Brown wrote in an email.

Queen's taking steps ahead of weekend

The task force website does lists 14 recommendations, "many" of which are being implemented as the university prepares for the weekend, according to Brown.

It is organizing off-campus outreach to talk to students and offering on-campus recovery for students who drink too much.

Her email said Queen's is rolling out a social media campaign, has adopted a "no-guest policy" in residence and is giving away a safe partygoer kit giveaway with snacks, condoms and bandages.

"Actions such as climbing on roofs, breaking glass, or disrespecting area residents are unacceptable," stated interim provost Teri Shearer in a media release shared Friday.

"Large groups of people gathering in the University District have the potential to interfere with traffic and the provision of emergency services and can unintentionally put people in harm's way. These are all things Queen's and our partners are determined to address."

Glenn said she's been fielding resident concerns about street parties, adding many people are "fed up" with property damage, students climbing on roofs and people who have too much to drink ending up in emergency rooms.

Fines go up to $2,000

The consensus based on social media chatter is there will be parties on Friday and a bigger one Saturday, said Kyle Compeau, the city's manager of enforcement services.

Bylaw dealt with a two-day celebration last year too, handing out dozens of fines.

Compeau said the bylaw representative on the task force has made suggestions for changes, but "we're not sure where the report is."

The university and enforcement work together around large-scale events, he said, but having that report in hand would be helpful ahead of the weekend.

Parties cost police

The annual party has a sobering affect on the police's bottom line, according to a recent budget report that showed the service incurred $83,000 in overtime in 2022 that hadn't been budgeted.

That's compared to $2,000 tallied in 2021 under stronger pandemic rules.

The service has also been posting on social media, sharing a copy of the information pamphlet officers are handing out, which warns of fines ranging from $100 for shouting to $500 for refusing to identify themselves to police.

In a video posted to Twitter acting Chief Scott Fraser urges students to have a good time, but stay safe.

"Our mission is to ensure you're safe and to ensure the residents of Kingston are safe," he says.