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A Waterloo Regional Police officer was deployed as part of the force’s response to an unsanctioned St. Patrick’s Day street party in the university district over the weekend, a decision that reportedly left the mayor “shocked and surprised.”

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Waterloo Mayor Dorothy McCabe told The Canadian Press that she was unaware of the decision after the region’s police force, which is responsible for law enforcement in Kitchener and Cambridge as well, confirmed that a photo and video of the sniper from Saturday shows one of their officers.

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McCabe, who also told The Canadian Press that she was unaware of concerns about weapons or “extreme violence” associated with the event, has since sought a meeting with Waterloo Regional Police Chief Mark Crowell to understand why a sniper was needed to monitor the event.

St. Patrick’s Day parties have been an issue in Waterloo for years, particularly in the residential area south of the Laurier University campus. The neighbourhood is also near Uptown Waterloo, the city’s main business district, and not far from the University of Waterloo and a Conestoga College satellite campus.

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Parties have grown in notoriety

On Saturday, the public was warned to avoid the Marshall St.-Regina St. N. area and that the Waterloo police public order unit was “assisting in the moving of individuals.”

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“Our messaging remains the same in asking people taking part in the festivities to be safe and respectful,” police spokesperson Chris Iden told CTV News in Kitchener on Saturday. “There will be an increase in police and municipal bylaw in the university area to ensure the safety of the public.”

Once considered a “very manageable event,” the unsanctioned street party has grown in notoriety with multiple revellers being arrested in 2019 after the crowd of an estimated 20,000 people turned rowdy and pelted officers with bottles.

The city tried to get a handle on the situation in 2025 by seeking a court injunction, CityNews Kitchener reported, before choosing this year to use its nuisance bylaws to keep celebrations in check, while also declaring a community safety event.

Waterloo police ignored a question from The Canadian Press about why a sniper was working at this year’s event, but told them that officers “work closely” with first responders and community groups, including those involved with local post-secondary institutions, to provide a co-ordinated response to the parties.

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