Can Cal Poly repeat last year’s St. Fratty’s Day success? | Opinion

St. Fratty’s Day is coming.

The question is, will it revert to a bacchanal where drunken college students take over residential streets near Cal Poly, blasting music, climbing telephone polls, trampling flowers and occasionally puking in public?

Or will Cal Poly manage to repeat — or even expand on — the success of last year, when it sponsored a free concert with popular headliners as an alternative to rowdy street partying?

That, together with stepped-up police enforcement in the neighborhoods, made a big difference.

Over the 2025 St. Patrick’s Day weekend, there were far fewer citations issued — 45 compared to 159 in 2024 — and there weren’t nearly as many reports of disturbances and vandalism, either on- or off-campus.

The concert, however, did not go off without a hitch. The event was limited to 5,000 students, and tickets were gone within three minutes. The administration advised disappointed students that there would be a standby line.

But on the morning of, students weren’t inclined to wait patiently. They broke through barriers set up to control access, causing security to give up and allow everyone in — a smart move, considering how chaotic things could have become.

Will 10,000 tickets be enough?

This year, the university is back with another concert, only this time 10,000 tickets will be available. That’s better, but there are more than 20,000 students enrolled at Cal Poly, and unless there’s a plan for much tighter security, it seems inevitable that there could be a repeat of last year’s scene at the barricades.

Ideally, Cal Poly would open the gates to every student who wants to attend, but university officials say that’s not going to happen.

“There are limitations to how many individuals can gather in the venue, and an event accommodating every one of Cal Poly’s more than 23,000 students simply isn’t feasible,” spokesman Matt Lazier said via email. “In addition, the Morning on the Green concert is presented as an alternative event for Cal Poly students to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, and we know that while many of our students have participated in past years, the majority of Cal Poly students do not choose to party.”

Even with the limit, the March 14 event at the Lower Sports Complex is expected to be the biggest concert Cal Poly has ever presented.

Scarce details so far for Morning on the Green

The university has yet to release details about the event.

We don’t know who will be performing, how tickets will be distributed or how entry will be handled, though more information will be released next week, Lazier said.

Nor do we know how much it’s expected to cost, or how that amount will be covered. Last year, the university spent nearly $1.2 million on the concert and security. According to Mustang News, the university used money it collected from vendors, including rebates on purchases and credit card usage, the finance the event.

Whatever the ultimate price tag for this year’s event, there are bound to be questions about whether it’s a good use of university funds. Do we really have to bribe students with a party to get them to behave responsibly?

Apparently, yes.

Both the city and the university have imposed heavy fines — which will be in effect again this year — for violations such as excessive noise, open containers, public urination, vandalism, etc.

That did not curb the hard-partying, so Cal Poly tried another approach: It added a carrot.

Nothing wrong with that.

Remember, these are young people, some still in their teens. Many are living away from home for the first time. Of course they are going to party, especially at an event that has morphed into a campus tradition.

It’s not easy to channel that party energy in a more positive direction. In fact, it’s risky to even try.

Last year’s concert could have easily been a dud — as anyone who has ever hosted a large party will know.

Cal Poly deserves credit for getting it mostly right, and for finally being proactive in responding to what has been a longstanding headache for the entire community, especially for neighbors.

It’s too soon to say that St. Fratty’s Day hooliganism is a thing of the past, but with a little luck — and a lot of planning — it may be on its way out.