College Secures Permit for Tailgate

Dean of the College Benedict H. Gross '71 announced today that the Boston City Licensing Board has granted approval for the Nov. 18 Harvard-Yale tailgate party on Ohiri field. The rules presented by the College, including the rule banning undergraduates from bringing alcoholic beverages into the student tailgate area, have now been formalized and will be enforced by Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) the day of the game.

The three-hour long tailgate will have multiple stations manned by staff from Professional Bartending Inc. that will sell beer and spiked hot chocolate to students of legal drinking age for $1, the rules state. Students must show two forms of identification, including a Harvard ID and a driver's license or passport.

The rules also state that vehicles approaching the tailgate area will be inspected before entering. "Visibly intoxicated" individuals will also not be permitted inside the student tailgate area at any time.

Harvard will organize a pep rally the Thursday night before the game and host campus-wide parties, jointly funded by the House Committees (HoCos), on Friday only.

Despite initial plans to throw parties on the Thursday night before the game as well, the College has decided not to allow such parties due to a shortage of police detail, according to Mather HoCo Chair Andy Artz '07. Artz said the decision was presented to House masters after Francis D. Riley, the head of HUPD, expressed concern that there might not be enough police supervision on Thursday to ensure "everyone has a safe party."

This year, student groups and HoCos planning to host a tailgate were required to submit a detailed application by this past Monday. Each HoCo will have a guaranteed lot at the tailgate, according to Campus Life Fellow John T. Drake '06, but not all other applications will be granted approval.

According to Artz, student groups may now bring food into the tailgate as long as they meet "sanitary standards," a change from the College's initial proposal.