Cork councillors caught short by not knowing about new city centre toilet facility

Councillors call for clear signposting and advertising after it emerged many were unaware of new toilet facility behind 'brown door' on Grand Parade 

Monday's meeting of Cork City Council was also told tour operators who bus cruise ships passengers from Cobh to the city have warned the perceived lack of public toilets in the city was damaging its reputation. File picture

Cork City Hall needs to signpost and advertise the city’s public toilets more clearly, councillors have said, after it emerged a clean, supervised loo has opened next to the city library without some of them even knowing about it.

Monday's meeting of Cork City Council was also told tour operators who bus cruise ships passengers from Cobh to the city have warned the perceived lack of public toilets in the city was damaging its reputation.

And the conversion of an old public toilet on Grand Parade into a city centre policing hub has been ruled out, on cost and complexity grounds, with the unit due for removal within a few months.

The details emerged after councillors received a report on foot of a request from Green Party councillor Oliver Moran on the progress of the implementation of the council’s public toilet policy, agreed in May 2021.

That document outlined a series of short-, medium- and long-term policies for the provision of public toilets in the city centre and the wider city area.

One of the first short-term aims was to reopen the toilets in North Main Street shopping centre, which was completed on June 29, 2021.

This supervised facility provides four ladies' toilets, two gents' toilets and a urinal, one accessible toilet and one baby-changing unit and toilet.

Grand Parade

Among the medium-term policies was the development of a new toilet facility on the Grand Parade.

That has been delivered next to the city library. It features an accessible toilet and baby-changing unit, as well as one unisex toilet.

The toilets are accessed directly via a brown door on the Grand Parade, separate to the main entrance to the city library.

This toilet is supervised at all times, is accessible via a 50c payment, with a contactless payment system in use. There is a sign on the wall with its opening times, and symbols on the door indicating it is a public toilet.

But several city councillors said they did not realise it was there behind an innocuous brown door.

Mr Moran said it was heartening to see progress on the strategy but he said signposts to the loos would be helpful, and he called for a public toilet in the Glen River Park.

“Maybe there is a lack of awareness about the facilities on North Main St and Grand Parade. I wasn’t aware that they were open and I don’t think many members of public are as well,” he said.

Sinn Féin councillor Mick Nugent said he knew a loo on the Grand Parade was coming but he did not realise it was behind the brown door next to the library.

“I didn’t realise it was actually open. After various rallies in the city, I’ve actually gone into the toilets in the library,” he said.

Toilets have also been provided at the English Market, Marina Park, Bishopstown Park, Tramore Valley Park, the Regional Park in Ballincollig, and in Fitzgerald’s Park, councillors were told.

The report said the strategy sought to raise awareness of the facilities through social media, but independent councillor Kieran McCarthy, who leads walking tours of the city, said much more needed to be done.

"I lead tourists around the city, but you can't corral them into the city library. I encourage them to spread out and go into local businesses — and without those businesses, we'd be lost. If we are really serious about this [providing more toilets], we need to fund them."

‘Leeside Leithreas’ scheme

Councillors were also told discussions around the proposed ‘Leeside Leithreas’ sticker scheme — where businesses near amenity areas would agree to make their loos available to the public — were still at “preliminary stage”.

“There are some initial discussions around the possibility that this policy could be incorporated as part of the Age Friendly ‘Take a Seat’ initiative,” the report said.

This initiative proposes to set aside a small number of existing outdoor seats at restaurants and pubs for use by older visitors, without having to buy anything from the participating premises, which would also make its toilet facilities available, if required.

Fianna Fáil councillor John Sheehan said for some people the availability of a public toilet in the city centre is the difference between them going to town or not.

“If we are going to make our city more inclusive, it’s very important that we extend this, and make them more accessible, and not rely on the private businesses,” he said.