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Days ahead of St. Patrick’s Day, barriers and no-parking signs are already going up on Ezra Avenue in Waterloo, in an effort to contain potentially dangerous street parties. Updated March 14 Fencing is put up on Ezra Avenue ahead of St. Patrick’s Day, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025. Mathew McCarthy Waterloo Region Record Laurier students have long made Saint Patrick’s Day their unofficial school holiday and in recent years, the City of Waterloo has struggled to contain the event. What started as a massive gathering on Ezra Avenue eventually prompted city officials to act, fencing off the street and increasing police presence. The University District of Waterloo includes the Northdale and MacGregor neighbourhoods, as well as Waterloo Park and the majority of the uptown neighbourhood. It also includes Ezra Avenue, the typical location of the St. Patrick’s Day street party. Fencing has gone up on Ezra Avenue, in Waterloo, Ont.’s university district, in the hopes it will deter people from taking part in unsanctioned St. Patrick’s Day street parties. Fencing on Ezra Avenue has been erected since 2022 to discourage student gatherings for St. Patrick’s Day in Waterloo. Police are looking at more strategies to curb crowds. Waterloo, Ont. is taking action to crack down on unsanctioned St. Patrick’s Day street parties. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, tens of thousands of people would flood Ezra Avenue in Waterloo, Ont. for an unsanctioned street party. But with most of the street fenced off this St. Patrick's Day The City of Waterloo has been granted a court injunction that aims at helping police break up "dangerous unsanctioned street gatherings" during the weekend leading up to St. Patrick's Day, a There is no street parking on Ezra Street and Clayfield Avenue Wednesday March 13 at midnight to Sunday March 17 and on Bricker Avenue from Thursday March 14 to Sunday March 17. All parking will be prohibited on any street in the area bound by Albert St., Columbia St. W, Weber St. N., and Bridgeport Rd. E. on March 16 and March 17. Around 8,000 people attended the unsanctioned St. Patrick’s Day street party in Waterloo, according to a report which will be presented to the police service board on Wednesday. A large number of post-secondary students are expected to take part in a massive unsanctioned street party this weekend to celebrate St. Patrick's Day in the City of Waterloo. Each year 20,000 to 30,000 people gather on Ezra Street in Waterloo Ontario to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Come check it out!-----FOLLOW US!Website: ht Crowds get bigger 2013 - St. Patrick's day was on a Sunday. Weather was cold, but it picked up momentum from previous year. St. Patricks Day, Ezra Street Block Final bill for Ezra Avenue St. Patrick’s Day street party in Waterloo: $767,211 READ MORE: Ezra Avenue St. Patrick’s Day crowd peaked at 33,000 people: Waterloo police. With St. Patrick’s Day just around the corner, the City of Waterloo, and the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS) are preparing for massive gatherings that often spill into city streets. In a statement to CityNews Kitchener, a spokesperson for the City of Waterloo said, “there is an operational plan in place for March 17, led by WRPS.” An estimated 10-15 thousand students gathered to celebrate St. Patrick's Day on Ezra Street in Waterloo. Decked out in green, students took over Ezra Street for St. Patrick's Day. Kate Bueckert Waterloo Regional Police have estimated that 33,000 people were at the unsanctioned street party on Ezra Avenue on St. Patrick’s Day at its highpoint. Fencing has been installed along Ezra Avenue in advance of St. Patrick’s Day weekend. It’s the third straight year the road is being blocked off to prevent students from gathering there for an unsanctioned street party. Thousands of party-goers took to Ezra Avenue in Waterloo to celebrate St. Patrick's Day on Sunday. CBC Kitchener-Waterloo was there to capture the scene as the unsanctioned party grew throughout
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