On Tuesday, Queen’s University announced that they will be forming a task force in order to find new approaches to address street parties in Kingston’s University District.
The announcement by Principal Patrick Deane recognized that the large street parties are putting a burden on the community, as well as local enforcement and health care services in the University District.
The task force hopes to engage all community partners and search for different approaches to the large gatherings.
“Keeping our community and students safe is a top priority for the university, and that is why I am striking a task force with our community partners to identify best practices and innovative approaches to this complex problem,” Principal Deane says.
According to the news release, the task force will be chaired by Principal Patrick Dean and includes student leaders, the City of Kingston, local enforcement as well as emergency response partners to “the effectiveness of current approaches and to learn from the best practices used in other jurisdictions.”
“Queen’s is an active partner in working with the City of Kingston and enforcement agencies to proactively discourage and respond to large gatherings, but it is clear that new approaches are needed,” Principal Deane says. “Several Ontario communities are facing the issue of large gatherings, which have evolved into events that attract people from across the province, aided by social media. We need multi-faceted strategies to address the multiple factors that lead to these large gatherings.”
The task force will be followed by a report and recommendations by September of 2022, and more information will appear on the Office of the Principal and Vice-Chancellor.
The announcement comes hours before Kingston City Council is slated to discuss new bylaw amendments to its Nuisance Party Bylaw. Principal Patrick Deane is not the first principal to try to “reinvent” the wheel when it comes to taming large street party’s. Former Principal Daniel Woolf canceled its October Homecoming from 2009 until 2013. However, this did not stop students from creating a “fauxcoming,” during that time.
