Party hosts would be fined for noisy gatherings under a proposed Ottawa bylaw which passed a city committee Thursday.
Building tenants and owners will face heavy fines if city council approves the bylaw, as opposed to current rules where officers try to find who's making the noise.
These proposed changes are coming from multiple, ongoing noise complaints in some parts of the city, usually with a large university student population.
"In some instances it's just people being disrespectful, just hosting parties night after night," said Ottawa councillor Mathieu Fleury. "And not just five to ten people, up to 50-80 people on the property."
One of the areas with many noise complaints is Sandy Hill, where students live amongst family homes.
"I'd say there are people sitting on their balconies drinking and talking, getting louder and louder," said one resident.
Almost 200 university students filled its streets for a St. Patrick's Day party this year, with some throwing bottles or urinating in public.
"I'm a student, I'm used to the noise so it doesn't really bother me," said one woman. "I have a lot of friends in the area so it's kind of nice when you hear the noise because you know which parties to go to."
"We like living downtown and that's what you would expect living in an urban area, its going to be noisy," said another resident.
Ottawa bylaw officers are also patrolling these areas later on weekend nights, going until 3:30 a.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Claudia Cautillo
