Ryerson’s annual Parade and Picnic will no longer be welcome at Toronto Island — but the reason behind the ban is yet unclear.
The area’s councillor, Pam McConnell, confirmed the ban to The Ryersonian on Wednesday, but remains tight-lipped otherwise.
“The councillor supports the parks managers’ decision to not permit this event in the future,” McConnell’s office said in a brief statement.
The city’s parks department, which oversees the part of the island where the event is held, could not be immediately reached, but an employee confirmed there were noise complaints during the event.
“We had 12 complaints from the island community log book on Sept. 5 between 1:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m,” said Warren Hoselton, a park supervisor.
The log book is a noise recording system that island residents use to record noise disturbances on the island and harbour front.
But the event’s concert took place at Hanlan’s Point Beach, which borders the nearby airport and is in a relatively uninhabited area.
Police said there were no reports regarding the concert. Ferry services said there were no complaints.
Ryerson Students’ Union president Rajean Hoilett said: “We had one complaint that we heard regarding noise.”
He added the complaint was made to the university, not the RSU.
“We heard it during our meeting with the university — that it was one complaint from a resident,” he said.
This year’s 54th annual parade held on Sept. 5 had thousands of Ryerson students walking down Yonge Street. They then ferried to Toronto Island for a concert headlined by the rapper Nas.
Zachary Dodds, Ryersonian Reporter.
He graduated from the Ryerson School of Journalism in 2015.