SAN DIEGO — Halloween is supposed to be a festive time of the year but because of coronavirus, San Diego State University has asked students not to hold parties on or off-campus but neighbors are asking will they comply?
“SDSU Halloween party this Friday!” was written in bold letters on a flyer posted on Twitter this week. The account is marked private and only approved followers will know where the party is being held.
“These parties have 2[00] to 300 people in the backyard. How are you going to identify who was at that party?” asked Jean Hoeger, a member of the College Area Public Safety Resident group. “The minute the police are there, they’re up and going through the fences, our back yards. They’re gone, they book it.”
After issuing a stay-at-home advisory, the university released a statement today as a reminder, saying in part:
“Students are not to host parties or to host and attend gatherings in ways that are not in compliance with the state’s public health order, the county’s guidelines and university policies. As you are aware, SDSU has also implemented a Stay-at-Home Advisory and all students are encouraged to remain home through the advisory period.”
The advisory period will last until Monday, Nov. 2. Still, neighbors say they’re expecting the parties to go on anyway.
“A lot of people are kind of banning together and saying, 'Hey you know, I live at such and such address. If I hear a party on your street, I’m going to go see where it is. Then I’ll call you and say, Is this party bothering you?' You know, just kind of getting together and helping each other out,” Hoeger said.
SDSU is also stepping in to try and curb in-person parties. It’s planning virtual events for students this weekend including the Halloween Spook-Tacular on Halloween night.
San Diego Police also told News 8 that they will be responding to any loud party complaints in the area and they will take the appropriate action.