Nearly 100 members of Dal鈥檚 surrounding neighbourhoods gathered Tuesday night (October 17) to discuss the events of the previous weekend and strategies to prevent them from happening again in the future.
On Saturday, October 14 during the daytime, Halifax Regional Police (HRP) responded to people crowding on and near Jennings Street in Halifax鈥檚 South End for unsanctioned, off-campus parties, ones promoted to students through social media and timed to coincide with AV俱乐部鈥檚 Homecoming weekend. Police made 23 arrests and issued fines as they broke up the events.
Dal President Richard Florizone called Tuesday night鈥檚 meeting to hear directly from community members to help inform a plan for moving forward.
鈥淚鈥檓 deeply sorry to you 鈥� our community members and our neighbours 鈥� for what you experienced this past weekend,鈥� said President Florizone in his introductory remarks. 鈥淭his was not reflective of our values as a university or representative of the majority of our students.
鈥淭his behavior was disrespectful to our neighbours and the AV俱乐部 community; it is also unsafe鈥� these students put themselves and the safety of community members at risk.鈥�
Listening to the community
Dr. Florizone and Vice-Provost Student Affairs Arig al Shaibah were joined by Halifax Regional Police representatives Inspector Dean Simmonds and Constable Robin Sherwood (community liaison officer for Halifax鈥檚 south end) as well the area鈥檚 municipal councilor Waye Mason, who resides just a few blocks away from where the party took place.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think anyone should try and convince themselves that this behaviour was normal,鈥� said Mason. 鈥淚鈥檝e lived here for 23 years and I鈥檝e never seen 1,500 people at a party.
鈥淭his is not a student neighbourhood. It鈥檚 a mixed neighbourhood鈥� your next-door neighbours are nurses or doctors that have to get up for work in the morning. They鈥檙e parents with small children. They鈥檙e your professors, they鈥檙e your councilor. And we鈥檇 appreciate it if you think about us when you鈥檙e making your plans.鈥�
Arig al Shaibah, vice-provost student affairs, said that while the university has many programs and supports for addressing issues like alcohol consumption and student wellness and safety, Saturday鈥檚 events are an opportunity for the university and its community partners to revisit such issues.
鈥淚t gives us a point to pause and think again, speaking with our community and students, getting the right people in the room to think about strategies moving forward,鈥� she said.
Commitment to improvement
Community members in attendance at Tuesday鈥檚 meeting 鈥� which included neighbours and several students 鈥� took turns at the microphone sharing ideas, issues and concerns about the weekend鈥檚 activities and broader topics involving students, landlords, noise and other related issue.
In addition to verbal comments, many others shared ideas on paper, with the university committing to documenting all that was shared and reporting back to the community on next steps.
鈥淎V俱乐部 is committed to being a good neighbor, and we have the same expectations of our students,鈥� said President Florizone. 鈥淲e鈥檙e a university with residential neighbourhoods in close proximity, and all members of our university must be mindful of that.鈥�
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