It’s Saturday night. A small gathering of four or five people slowly grows to 15 or 20. Then 50. Then 100.
The gathering has become a party — one some would call out of control.
But for some Evanston residents, that initial gathering of four or five people can be just as unruly as a party of 100.
“It’s not just the number. I think it’s the type of people who come,” said Margarita Neimanas, 73, who lives on the 800 block of Hamlin Street. “Even two or three can be very destructive or very noisy.”
Some students, however, said they believe neighbors shouldn’t complain about such a low number of guests.
“We’ve had cops over here when there were like four guys watching TV,” said Mike Frisch, a Medill senior who lives on the 1100 block of Foster Street. “(Residents) should be aware they’re sharing a neighborhood with students.”
Some residents are more tolerant than others. Chris Jones, 25, who lives in an apartment on the 2100 block of Sherman Avenue, said he can deal with some noise.
“It would need to be pretty loud and pretty constant before I would call the cops,” Jones said. “I can usually put on a little music and drown out anything that is outside.”
Communication senior Jessica Scholl, who has hosted two large parties this year at her house on the 1900 block of Sherman Avenue, said her neighbors have been similarly understanding.
“When you decide to live on a street where half the (residents) are college students, you’re going to have to deal with some noise,” Scholl said.
But for residents such as Neimanas, dealing with the noise isn’t the problem.
“My yard is always full of bottles, cans, plastic cups,” she said. “It’s quite destructive. The noise isn’t as bad as the behavior outside.”
Jones agreed that misbehavior is a major issue.
“If it looked like people were really drunk, I would call the cops,” he said. “I don’t want to be getting into a fistfight at 12:00 at night.”
For Frisch, however, it’s not behavior, noise or number of people that determines if a party is over the top.
“We’ve probably had a 100 people in this house at one time,” he said. “When the cops show up, it’s too much.”
