Official Western Homecoming celebrations aren’t slated to take place until later next month, but that’s not deterring the thousands who are expected to descend on Broughdale Avenue Saturday for an unsanctioned homecoming street party.
More than 5,500 people have already added their names to a growing list of students and others who say they plan on attending the party this weekend, according to the Facebook event page “The Real Western Homecoming: 2017.” In addition, about 3,500 have marked themselves as “interested.”
“It’s just a tradition. I was lucky enough to have the experience for my first two years here, and I want to keep it going. I want to make sure that everyone’s enjoying themselves responsibly, having a good time, and just having fun,” said Theo De Bono, a third-year student at King’s University College, and creator of the Facebook page.
De Bono said Saturday’s unofficial homecoming — or ‘FOCO’ — is in response to Western’s decision, once again, to push back official Homecoming celebrations to late-October. School administration first made the change in 2016 to curb unsanctioned homecoming parties along Broughdale, the largely student-populated dead-end avenue located one block south of University Drive, and on surrounding streets.
In 2015, some 10,000 people packed Broughdale for an unsanctioned homecoming party, prompting safety concerns. Paramedics and other emergency personnel reported being unable to traverse the crowded street to respond to calls. During the event, one student was impaled by a fence, someone suffered a severe allergic reaction, while another fell off a rooftop. In all, 16 calls were made to paramedics.
Pushing back Homecoming by a month, school officials said last year, would mean a decrease in that rowdy behaviour, as most students would be in the thick of mid-terms and the weather would be colder. It’s not entirely clear how many turned out to last year’s unofficial homecoming. A London Free Press report, citing an estimate from Orest Katolyk, the city’s chief bylaw enforcement officer, quoted a turnout of less than half that seen in 2015, while the Western Gazette estimated more than 7,000 were in attendance. Unlike last year’s unofficial homecoming, however, which took place largely under rainy skies, this year will see sunny conditions and a high of 16 C.
Police have made it clear that they too will be attending this year’s ‘FOCO’ celebrations, releasing on Wednesday a statement saying they would “take a strict but fair enforcement approach on Broughdale Avenue and the surrounding area.” Western President Amit Chakma released a similar statement the same day saying those planning to attend the event were “taking considerable safety risks,” and “bear full personal responsibility for their actions.”
Chakma added that along with the potential for Criminal Code charges and potential civil action, students could also face sanctions for their behaviour under Western’s Code of Student Conduct.
De Bono said he hoped police would make their presence known like they did last year, and hoped people would have fun responsibly.
“[Officers] were walking through the crowd ticketing people who had open alcohol, they were telling people to get off the streets… they were on it,” he said. “I’m honestly, expecting, hopefully, the same treatment this year… I don’t think anyone enjoys parties when they get way out of control.”
Should things get out of control, those living along Broughdale Avenue are being warned that they’re ultimately responsible for what happens at their residence.
“If there is a criminal offence that is committed on the property, and you’ve invited the individual in and you have taken some part in the commission of that offence, you may well be considered a party to the offence and face a criminal charge,” said lawyer Michael Lerner, a partner with Lerners Lawyers in London, in an interview with AM980’s Craig Needles on Friday.
Lerner adds you could also face legal repercussions should someone be seriously injured.
“If someone is unfortunately seriously injured, you can be sure that there will be a civil claim naming the person who convened the party and who invited the people to that particular location for liability for what has occurred,” he said. Those caught violating the city’s public nuisance by-law could potentially see fines as high as $10,000.
Lerner admitted he wasn’t pleased with the unsanctioned homecoming event, telling AM980 he saw it less as a passive protest about the date change and more as an excuse for some students to have a second gathering.
“This has the potential, as has happened in the past, for serious criminal incident to occur, serious bodily harm to occur,” he said. “People who have no relationship with Western or any university have come by bus to participate in this, what I would call, simply, a breach of the peace.
“I think there has to be consequences, and the more severe the consequences, the more of a general deterrent it will be.”
That being said, he conceded it was likely too late for the event to be cancelled.
“They would certainly get some credit, and it would be somewhat of a mitigating factor, if they were now to go on and say ‘party cancelled, sorry, changed our mind.’ At this point, I don’t think that’s going to stop a number of people from arriving,” he said.
Asked if, in hindsight, he wished he hadn’t created the Facebook page, De Bono replied: “I wouldn’t say I regret it, but I wasn’t anticipating this type of feedback, certainly not from London police and certainly not from Western administration.”
“But, I’m ahead of it now, so I might as well go through with it, right?”
– With files from Tom Fraser, Jess Brady
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