(01-10-2019, 05:51 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: Looks like UW is cancelling the Canada Day celebration on north campus, one last fireworks this year:

https://www.therecord.com/news-story/9119370-uw-ready-to-hand-off-canada-day-celebration/

My Editorializing:

The students organized and hosted the celebration for 29 years, within 5 years of taking over, the UW administration is cancelling them.  I don't have much respect left for UW administration.

(01-10-2019, 06:09 PM)plam Wrote:

(01-10-2019, 05:51 PM)danbrotherston Wrote: Looks like UW is cancelling the Canada Day celebration on north campus, one last fireworks this year:

https://www.therecord.com/news-story/9119370-uw-ready-to-hand-off-canada-day-celebration/

My Editorializing:

The students organized and hosted the celebration for 29 years, within 5 years of taking over, the UW administration is cancelling them.  I don't have much respect left for UW administration.

It's the flip side of the St. Patrick's Day festivities. UW doesn't want to host an event with 60,000 people. I couldn't verify the claims that attendance has been increasing; there was 70,000 for the 150th anniversary but the 60,000 seems pretty stable.

I also wonder if the administration took it over after the students didn't want to do it anymore / no longer have the capacity to do so.

(01-11-2019, 09:33 AM)Spokes Wrote: Between this and closing the Bomber, cost cutting seems like it's on the top of the list at UW.

I wonder if it's purely about the money though.  Like if the Region stepped in and offered to foot the bill, would they go for that?  It feels like a Region this size should have some sort of big official Canada Day celebration.

(01-11-2019, 09:56 AM)Ace Wrote:

(01-11-2019, 09:33 AM)Spokes Wrote: Between this and closing the Bomber, cost cutting seems like it's on the top of the list at UW.

I wonder if it's purely about the money though.  Like if the Region stepped in and offered to foot the bill, would they go for that?  It feels like a Region this size should have some sort of big official Canada Day celebration.

The Bomber was owned & operated by the students (FEDS) and consistently operated at a loss.

(01-11-2019, 09:14 PM)tomh009 Wrote:

(01-11-2019, 09:56 AM)Ace Wrote: The Bomber was owned & operated by the students (FEDS) and consistently operated at a loss.

In the old days, as I recall, it was actually a money-maker for the Feds. But the campus (and student population) was much different back then.

Quote:University of Waterloo students are dismayed by the university's plan to bow out of the annual campus Canada Day celebration.

"It's not something we should reduce or hand off," said Seneca Velling, secretary of the Federation of Students council. "I would love it if there were more structured events like this."

The university announced last week that this year's party will be a scaled-down version with just fireworks, rather than the usual daylong celebration with live entertainment and activities that attracts upwards of 60,000 people to Columbia Lake. After that, the university is hoping a new host will take over the July 1 celebration.

Velling said students were not given any notice of the decision.

"The student council, at least, wasn't informed," Velling said.
...

The federation, which is the undergraduate student union at Waterloo, adopted a resolution at its Sunday council meeting calling on the cities of Waterloo and Kitchener, UW, Wilfrid Laurier University, Conestoga College and their student groups to develop a plan to hold a joint Canada Day celebration.

Now the student executive will reach out with the aim of getting everyone to come to the table to discuss the event's future. The federation would like to see the celebration continue at Columbia Lake.

"If we can get new partners involved with it, then scaling it up would be nice," Velling said.

He said the university should recognize the value to students, both in nurturing good mental health and connecting them to the broader community.

(01-17-2019, 09:53 AM)Spokes Wrote: Is this typically considered a student event these days?  I haven't gone for a number of years, but when I first moved back to Waterloo Region 10 years ago it seemed like lots of non students attended too.

(01-17-2019, 10:51 AM)Spokes Wrote: Ok, I always remembered it being a community thing, not just students, but that could have been 24 year old me remembering that.