For the second year in a row, Cal Poly worked closely with the city of San Luis Obispo to keep St. Fratty’s Day celebrations under control, offering students a safer way to celebrate while keeping the streets clear.
The university’s Morning on the Green music festival the weekend before St. Patrick’s Day intended to draw crowds of students to campus rather than streets and neighborhoods, providing a controlled environment for partying and music.
The festival featured locals McKenna and Ev, followed by headliners Walker and Royce, and closed with electronic duo Odd Mob. Cal Poly sold 14,000 tickets, and at its peak, around 11,000 students were on campus enjoying the early-morning performances. Last year, tickets were capped at 5,000 and sold out in three minutes.
Cal Poly Assistant Vice President for Communications and Media Relations Matt Lazier told New Times via email that to support student safety, the university set up three Sober-Up Spaces—one at the concert venue, one at the Multi-Activity Center, and one in University Housing.
“These spaces were staffed by volunteers and served as a place where students could go if they felt over-intoxicated, or where friends could take someone they were with if that person needed to rest and sober up,” he said. Students were instructed to call 911 immediately if someone was unconscious or unresponsive.
During the weekend, nine students were transported from a Sober-Up Space to a local hospital for alcohol-related issues and one person was treated for a head injury after falling near a creek outside the concert venue, Lazier said. Despite these incidents, University President Jeffrey Armstrong described the event as well managed, crediting careful planning and collaboration between university staff, volunteers, and law enforcement.
“Thank you to everyone who contributed to this past weekend’s Morning on the Green music festival. It was a tremendous success and a true reflection of what we can accomplish when our campus comes together,” Armstrong wrote. “Teams worked long hours behind the scenes and on the front lines to ensure the weekend was safe, well coordinated, and enjoyable for all.”
Armstrong noted that the university collaborated with the California State University Critical Response Unit as a precautionary measure in the event additional police support was needed.
On the city side, SLO Police Department Deputy Chief Brian Amoroso reported that “the San Luis Obispo Police Department, along with 21 allied agencies, staged personnel in the neighborhoods adjacent to the Cal Poly campus in response to the ‘St. Fratty’s Day’ celebration.” Partner agencies included the Arroyo Grande, Atascadero, and Morro Bay police departments, as well as the San Francisco Police Department.
SLO County’s Emergency Medical Services Agency designated March 14 as a “mass casualty incident”—a preemptive measure to ensure city and county resources are prepared for potential increases in emergency calls during the busy weekend.
As in previous years, a “Safety Enhancement Zone” was in effect from March 6 through 18, during which all laws were strictly enforced, and fines were doubled for violations. According to a SLOPD media release, fines for noise, unruly gathering, open container, and public urination were doubled and ranged between $700 to $1,000.
“Between Friday at midnight through 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 14, SLOPD had one arrest downtown for assault and 19 citations for various nuisance order violations,” the March 14 release said.
Additionally, the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office announced it would not offer pre-filing misdemeanor diversion to anyone charged with crimes connected to St. Patrick’s Day activities. ∆
This article appears in Spring Arts Annual 2026.