WATERLOO - One St. Paddy's Day party won't be happening Monday thanks to a visit from police.

Waterloo Regional Police raided a Waterloo house near the universities on Sunday at 6:30 a.m. and seized 4,400 "Cold Shots."

The beer cans are slimmer in size and have an alcohol content of six per cent.

The value of the beer was about $5,500, said Staff Sgt. Paul Dreidger.

Police became aware of the party after monitoring Facebook, where a page on the social media site pointed to tickets being sold for a St. Patrick's Day party.

Charges will be laid under the Ontario Liquor Licence Act. The students did not have a permit to sell alcohol, Dreidger said.

Vince Amodeo, president of the The Loyal Order of the Waterbuffaloes, said his group has planned a charity event since 1985 off campus with money going to the local food bank, the Alzheimer's Society, cancer research and the Toronto United Way.

Students attending are asked for a $20 donation at the door which goes to the charities, Amodeo said.

Amodeo acknowledged the group did not have a permit. Last year, the group raised $10,000 for charity at a St. Paddy's Day party and at homecoming celebrations.

"In an attempt to control Ezra, they (police) are cracking down on everything. Unfortunately, we are the fallout," said the third-year history and political science student at Wilfrid Laurier University.

"We are not criminals. We are doing a good thing," he said. "We are being portrayed as drunken college kids."

Meanwhile, about a dozen security officers were out Sunday, walking in pairs on Ezra Street and around the Laurier campus to watch for any disturbances.

Deputy Police Chief Kevin Chalk said a platoon of officers was dedicated on Sunday for any St. Paddy's Day parties that started early.

On Monday, nearly 100 officers will be on the street during the annual St. Patrick's Day Ezra Avenue party and another 100 officers will be on standby.

Police say they don't want to stop the fun, but they want to ensure the event is a safe one. Last year, nearly 7,000 people crowded on Ezra Street and police worried about the potential for trouble with increased crowds.

Officers, including some from the public safety unit, will be patrolling the area. Police also plan to keep Ezra Street open to traffic.

This year, the City of Waterloo, in partnership with the universities, agreed to erect a tent and hold a party in a controlled venue on Seagram Drive next to the K-W Granite Club.

XL Lifestyle of Toronto, an event production company, is providing the entertainment in the tent including a local band and local DJs. The headliner is New York City-based DJs The Chainsmokers.

Tickets are sold out for the event which can hold up to 3,000 revelers. A free pancake breakfast will be held at 11 a.m. The event ends at 6 p.m.

The 24-metre-by-6-metre tent will be heated but "it won't be Acapulco," said Graham Bauckham of Varsity Tents from Toronto.

"We won't go crazy with the heat. It's not a gala event," he said. "My job is to build it up and make it safe."

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There are 50 portable washrooms on site and food trucks will be on hand.

Last year, there were about 150 liquor-related offences laid at the street party, including open liquor, public intoxication and drinking under 19. There were four criminal charges, including two impaired driving, assault with a weapon and assault.

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